MORTAR
FIRE In Eastern Democratic Republic Of Congo Has Killed Three Tanzanian
Soldiers Who Were Part Of A Southern Africa Force Deployed To Help Government
Troops Battling M23 Rebels.
The
Regional Force Sent Soldiers To North Kivu Province In December To Help
Kinshasa Regain Ground From The M23 Militia In The Lawless East.
The
Force Includes Soldiers From Regional Military Heavyweight South Africa,
Tanzania And Malawi.
"This
Unfortunate Incident Happened After A Hostile Mortar Round Had Fallen Near The
Camp They Were Staying," The 10-Nation Southern African Development
Community (Sadc) Said In A Statement.
It
Gave No Further Details About The Incident.
A
Soldier From South Africa Has Also Died In Hospital While Being Treated For
Health Problems, It Added.
After
Several Years Of Dormancy, The Mostly-Tutsi M23 (March 23 Movement) Group Took
Up Arms Again In Late 2021 And Has Seized Vast Swathes Of North Kivu Province.
The
Region Has Been Wracked By Violence In The Decades Since Regional Wars In The
1990s.
The
Drc, The Un And Western Countries Accuse Rwanda Of Supporting The Rebels In A
Bid To Control The Region's Vast Mineral Resources, An Allegation Kigali
Denies.
The
Force Suffered Its First Losses In Mid-February When Two South African Soldiers
Were Killed By Mortars Near The Provincial Capital, Goma.
The
Force Was To Take Over From An East African Peacekeeping Force, Whose Mandate
Was Ended By Kinshasa Which Accused It Of Colluding With The Rebels Instead Of
Fighting Them.
The
Un Mission In Democratic Republic Of The Congo (Monusco) Is Also Being Being
Wound Down.
The
15,000 Un Troops Deployed In The Vast Central African Country Started To Leave
In February At The Request Of The Kinshasa Government, Which Considers Them
Ineffective.
The
Withdrawal Is Due To Be Completed By The End Of The Year.
According
To An Internal Un Document Seen By Afp, M23 Rebels Have Made New Gains In The
East After Indian Un Troops Abandoned Positions Near Goma.
Monusco
Said In A Note To Staff That "The Current Security Situation Is Becoming
Increasingly Volatile As M23 Has Reached The Northern Outskirts Of Sake."
Sake
Is About 25 Kilometres (15 Miles) From Goma, Where The Population Has Doubled
To Two Million As Refugees Flee The Advance Of The Rebel Group.
Residents
Said That M23 And Congolese Forces Exchanged Artillery Fire Throughout The
Weekend Around Sake And The Western Outskirts Of Goma.