Showing posts with label Nkunda. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Nkunda. Show all posts

Sunday, November 30, 2008

Congolese terrorist group leader Nkunda threatens 'war' after taking border town of Ishasha, nr Goma, DR Congo

This is a vent. Why do reporters refer to Laurent Nkunda as "General"? Going by what I have gathered here at Congo Watch, he is a civilian criminal with a gang of terrifying gunmen and rapists.

In my view, Nkunda and his ilk are terrorists: terrorising, raping, maiming and murdering civilians, especially women and children, at random. They all belong in jail. I liken Nkunda to a deluded cult leader, like the drug addled Ugandan psycho LRA leader Jospeh Kony. Any evil psychopath with delusions of grandeur can get hold of a gun and call himself a General.

Look at the AFP photo here below, of Nkunda dressed all in white. Who does he think he is, the Pope or what? Why aren't the law enforcers sorting out these cretinous lowlifes?

How is Nkunda affording his luxurious array of expensive clothes and munitions? Why is he free to behave like an actor on the world's stage, lording it over the media like a pop star? Why aren't professional reporters telling us what is going on? So far, The Daily Telegraph's Africa correspondent David Blair is the only journalist giving us a clue as to what is really behind Nkunda.

If Nkunda and his ilk are not arrested soon for questioning, and put on trial to air and document their crimes, one might start suspecting that their backers are using power to influence the UN Security Council and, in the case of DR Congo, MONUC.

How else are Nkunda et al remaining free to do press interviews while roaming around with guns, instigating anarchy, rape, looting, pillaging, mass murders and environmental destruction, costing the world a fortune. What about the unimaginable misery and suffering of millions of poor defenceless locals and children. I wonder, who has such a power? I smell some rats.

Here is an excerpt from yesterday's BBC report, copied here below:
"If there is no negotiation, let us say then there is war," Gen Nkunda told reporters. "I know that (the government) has no capacity to fight, so they have only one choice - negotiations," he said.

"We asked for a response as to where, when, and with whom we are going to do these talks. For us, we propose Nairobi and for the mediator we proposed chief Obasanjo," Mr Nkunda said.
What a nerve! I say, the where, when, and with whom they are going to do these talks should be at:

THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT IN THE HAGUE, AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, WITH PROSECUTOR MORENO-OCAMPO.

And, while you're at it, take along other terrorist group leaders SLA's Nur, JEM's Ibrahim and LRA's Kony and get them to sing.

Obasanjo & Nkunda

Photo: Nkunda (in white) proposes Mr Obasanjo as the mediator of talks (AFP)

Vent continued. After 4.5 years of blogging hotspots in Africa, I am getting angry at continued reporting of neverending billions of taxpayers dollars being poured into Africa that ends up maintaining the careers of so-called "rebels".

African thugs without gainful employment are getting as media savvy as the Somali pirates. They pretend to be freedom fighters. All of them are only in it for themselves and the money. Their macho adventures attract so much media attention and publicity that they are being turned into celebrity heroes while they pose for photos with gun in hand, acting as role models for youngsters who may grow up believing that being a criminal is easier than doing an honest day's work to put bread on the table.

What has any of this to do with me one might ask. Ever since I was a child, I have given generously to a countless number of charities for Africa, especially Oxfam. Recently, I stopped donating because I no longer believe that the hard saved money I give is of any help. I am angry that a handful of thugs are using tax payer's money, garnered from the pockets of millions of decent hard working people, as a cash cow to milk and laugh at all the way to the bank while milliions of locals and children continue to be either raped, maimed, starved, murdered en masse or traumatised for the rest of their lives.

Genocide has become a rebels game. There's a method to their madness. I've tracked news on Sudan, South Sudan, Northern Uganda, DR Congo, Ethiopia and Niger for over 4 years, almost 24/7, and sense a pattern. The same thread of terror and land grabbing is running throughout those countries and, in my opinion, it all boils down to oil.

I say, arrest and question all rebel leaders, air and document their grievances and victims. Compared to the six billion other people on this planet, money grabbing power hungry lowlife terrorists are nothing but a handful of mosquitoes. Squash, get rid of them. They are infecting and killing the world. They are worse and more costly than AIDS and crazier than Al-Qaida.

CONGO REBEL CHIEF THREATENS 'WAR'

Saturday, 29 November 2008 report from the BBC:
Rebel leader General Laurent Nkunda has threatened war unless the government of DR Congo holds a new round of talks.

He was speaking after a meeting with UN envoy Olusegun Obasanjo in the rebel-held eastern town of Jomba.

Troops loyal to Gen Nkunda have been battling government forces in North Kivu province since August, forcing 250,000 people to flee their homes.

Two weeks ago Mr Obasanjo negotiated a ceasefire, but renewed fighting has since broken out.

"If there is no negotiation, let us say then there is war," Gen Nkunda told reporters.

"I know that (the government) has no capacity to fight, so they have only one choice - negotiations," he said.

"We asked for a response as to where, when, and with whom we are going to do these talks. For us, we propose Nairobi and for the mediator we proposed chief Obasanjo," Mr Nkunda said.

Government ministers this week rebuffed the possibility of direct negotiations with the rebel leader, calling for him to return to an earlier peace pact signed in January.

Emerging from his one-hour meeting, Mr Obasanjo avoided questions but said: "We have advanced the course of peace."

Mr Obasanjo - Nigeria's former president - is on his second visit to the region in two weeks.

He has been trying to broker direct talks between Gen Nkunda and Congolese President Joseph Kabila, but so far these have not taken place.

The UN envoy is travelling with former Tanzanian President Benjamin Mkapa, who is representing the African Union.

"I'm going to listen to him," Mr Mkapa said ahead of the meeting with Gen Nkunda.

"I want to know how he thinks we can get the restoration of peace, stability and unity in this country."
Truce violated

A ceasefire declared by Gen Nkunda has halted battles with government troops and brought nearly two weeks of relative calm.

But his men have continued attacking Congolese and Rwandan militia allies of the government, sending thousands of refugees fleeing east into Uganda.

Gen Nkunda says the ceasefire does not apply to operations against foreign militia.

On Thursday, the rebels took the border town of Ishasha, about 120km (75 miles) north of regional capital Goma.

His Tutsi-dominated forces say they are attacking Rwandan Hutu fighters, some of whom are accused of taking part in the 1994 Rwandan genocide, in which some 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus were slaughtered.

On Friday, the UN began an operation to relocate people from camps near the front line.

Some 65,000 people displaced by fighting have been living only a few hundred metres from fighting positions in Kibati, near Goma.

The UN is trying to transfer people to safer locations west of Goma.
Virunga, DR Congo

FORCES AROUND GOMA

CNDP: Gen Nkunda's Tutsi rebels - 6,000 fighters
FDLR: Rwandan Hutus - 6-7,000
Mai Mai: pro-government militia - 3,500
Monuc: UN peacekeepers - 6,000 in North Kivu, including about 1,000 in Goma (17,000 nationwide)
DRC army - 90,000 (nationwide)
Source: UN, military experts (BBC)

(Cross posted today at Sudan Watch and Uganda Watch)

Friday, November 28, 2008

Petition demanding that the UN in Congo (MONUC) arrest the notorious war criminal Nkunda now

For people everywhere who are outraged about war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by NKUNDA, a Petition was started by http://www.arrestnkundanow.org on November 25, 2008, saying:
We, the undersigned, make an urgent appeal to MONUC to fulfill its international obligations and immediately arrest Nkunda accused war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The continuing horrific killing of civilians testifies that Human Rights Watch was absolutely reasonable in its warning then in 2006 and it’s today. “So long as Nkunda is at large, the civilian population remains at grave risk"

We call on MONUC to arrest Nkunda immediately now without further delay

French translation:

Nous, soussignés, lançons un appel pressant à la MONUC de remplir ses obligations internationales et immédiatement arrêter Nkunda accusé de crimes de guerre et crimes contre l'humanité

La poursuite des horribles meurtres de civils témoigne que Human Rights Watch a été tout à fait raisonnable dans son avertissement depuis 2006 et il est aujourd'hui. "Aussi longtemps que Nkunda est en liberté, la population civile demeure en grand danger"

Nous demandons à la MONUC d'arrêter Nkunda immédiatement maintenant sans plus tarder.
To date, there are 279 signatures. I added mine today.

Laurent Nkunda

Photo: Nkunda denies accusations of rape and looting on the part of his forces [AFP] Source: Friday, 31 October 2008 (Aljazeera and agencies) report: Rebel move sees DR Congo city empty

"We are asking for freedom and we also have to fight for it" - Laurent Nkunda, speaking to Al Jazeera (Posted to Congo Watch 30 Oct 08)

Thursday, November 27, 2008

Nkunda made it clear he would not accept EU troops

This report tells us that Congolese war criminal Nkunda made it clear he would not accept EU troops, but wanted smaller countries such as Norway - not an EU member - to send contributions to the UN peacekeeping mission MONUC, or engage otherwise militarily.

What makes him think he is in a negotiable position? He should be in jail.

DRC rebel leader wants Norwegian mediation

November 27, 2008 (afrol News) report by staff writer:
Congolese rebel leader Laurent Nkunda has called on the Norwegian government, which has led several international peace mediations, to intervene in the armed conflict and humanitarian crisis in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

The Congolese rebel leader has made several advances towards Norway, politicians from the Nordic country revealed today. General Nkunda said he would trust the Norwegians due to their experience in peace mediation and Norway's very limited economic and political interests in his country.

Mr Nkunda today confirmed this to reporters from Norway's public broadcaster 'NRK' on telephone from eastern DRC. He again made an appeal to the Oslo government to get involved in the Congolese conflict.

Asked whether he believed that Norwegian mediators could achieve anything UN mediator and Nigerian ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo was unable to achieve, General Nkunda answered it was not a question of choosing. He "several times" had suggested to the Norwegian government that they should "assist" Mr Obasanjo in his ongoing mediation.

He also hailed a UN request for Norwegian peacekeepers in the DRC. "That is a very good idea. EU troops, no, but Norwegian troops I could trust." Mr Nkunda made it clear he would not accept EU troops, but wanted smaller countries such as Norway - not an EU member - to send contributions to the UN peacekeeping mission MONUC, or engage otherwise militarily.

Norway's government so far has been lukewarm when it comes to sending troops to the DRC, but Development Cooperation Minister Erik Solheim - who is also the peace mediator in Sri Lanka - immediately answered the Congolese rebel leader's request. He promised the Oslo government would go through the troop request again, having Mr Nkunda's desire in mind.

Mr Solheim also did not rule out a Norwegian effort to assist in DRC peace negotiations. Also other political leaders in Oslo gave their immediate support to look into the Congolese rebel leader's request.

Norway has a long history of international peace mediation, with the "Oslo process" between Israel and Palestine being the most known. Norway-mediated peaces also include Guatemala and Sri Lanka. In Africa, the Oslo government has been strongly involved in the South Sudan peace and is now trying to mediate between Ethiopia and Eritrea.

The DRC rebel leader to calling for Norwegian mediation has been seen as a sign of his Tutsi rebel movement being sincere in wanting to reach a peaceful solution to the eastern Congo conflict.

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

DR Congo: Army driven back by Nkunda's CNDP - DRC govt unwilling to talk to Nkunda, accusing him of war crimes - UN accuses both sides of war crimes

Tuesday, 11 November 2008 BBC report - Congo troops 'looting villages':
Army troops have been looting and targeting civilians in villages in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, a UN spokesman has said.

UN spokesman Lt-Col Jean Paul Dietrich said the looting around Kanyabayonga began in the early afternoon on Monday and continued through the night.

There were reports of women being raped during the looting, he said.

Troops in eastern DR Congo have been battling rebels loyal to a renegade general, Laurent Nkunda.

More than 250,000 people have been displaced by the violence, triggering a major humanitarian crisis.

On Tuesday, Gen Nkunda swore in an alternative administration for the east of the country where his forces had made recent gains, in what observers say is his latest direct challenge to the central government.

Twelve ministers will take responsibility for a range of functions including police and security.

However, a BBC correspondent in eastern DR Congo says the move appears to be pure propaganda.

Our correspondent says it may annoy the government but is likely to be insignificant unless General Nkunda follows it up with further military action.

'Aid workers trapped'

Lt-Col Dietrich told the BBC that the villages that were targeted in the Kanyabayonga area were controlled by the government, but the looting may have been sparked by rumours of a rebel attack.

He said UN peacekeepers and the Congolese army had been trying to stop the looting.

"I think that things are now getting under control," he said.

A spokesman for the UN humanitarian affairs agency was quoted as saying some aid officials had been trapped by the latest violence and the UN force was trying to bring them to safety.

Recent fighting has hampered aid efforts. Tens of thousands of displaced people are in camps north of Goma, some exposed to diseases including cholera.

Aid officials say many people remain in urgent need of food, clean water, healthcare and shelter.

Gen Nkunda claims to be fighting to protect his Tutsi community from attacks by Rwandan Hutu rebels, who fled to DR Congo after Rwanda's 1994 genocide.

On Monday, he threatened to take over the whole country if President Joseph Kabila's government continued in its refusal to negotiate with him.

But a Congolese official said the government was still unwilling to talk to the rebel leader and accused him of war crimes.

Regional threat

The UN has accused both sides of war crimes during the latest violence, following the reported killing of civilians in the eastern town of Kiwanja last week.

In recent weeks, Gen Nkunda's forces have taken a series of towns and villages near Goma, the capital of DR Congo's North Kivu province.

Gen Nkunda said on Monday that he was still observing a ceasefire declared late last month, and that since then he had only been responding to attacks by pro-government militia.

Mr Kabila was elected president in 2006 in polls that were backed by the UN, and which international observers generally declared to be fair.

As in the four-year war that began in DR Congo in 1998, the recent fighting has threatened to draw in neighbouring countries.

This weekend, southern African countries expressed their support for Congolese government forces and said they were sending military advisers and experts to the country.

Rwanda has long been accused of - and denied - supporting Gen Nkunda's forces.

It has twice invaded DR Congo, saying it wanted to act against the Hutu rebels.

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

DRC says Nkunda's labelled by UN as a warlord and war criminal since massacres in Kisangani in 2002 when he was general for RCD Goma

BBC report Tuesday 11 November 2008 - DR Congo angry at rebel demands:
A senior government official in DR Congo calls the country's rebel leader "a killer" and refuses to agree to his demand for talks.

The Democratic Republic of Congo government has rejected calls for talks with a rebel leader whose forces control eastern areas.

Gen Laurent Nkunda has said his forces would topple the government if no agreement to negotiate is struck.

But DR Congo's ambassador to the United Nations said Gen Nkunda should be in jail for war crimes.

Gen Nkunda commands 6,000 Tutsi rebels in the east, where some 250,000 people have been displaced by recent fighting.

The rebel leader says his forces are respecting a ceasefire, although they still surround the city of Goma, which is protected by UN peacekeepers.

In an interview with the BBC, Gen Nkunda reiterated a threat to overthrow the government of President Joseph Kabila unless it holds talks.

However, correspondents say it is not clear that his small force could really threaten the capital, Kinshasa, 1,600km (1,000 miles) to the west.

Gen Nkunda's remarks were summarily dismissed by Atoki Ileka, the country's UN envoy, who called the rebel leader "a killer".

"Laurent Nkunda has been labelled by the United Nations since 2002 as a warlord and a war criminal since the massacres in Kisangani in 2002 when he was general for the [rebel] RCD Goma," Mr Ileka said.

"So I don't have any trust in him. What I want - like I said to him about four years ago - [is] that one day I'm going to visit him. I'm going to visit him when he's going to be in jail.

"You don't negotiate with criminals, you catch a criminal and put him in jail so he can respond to justice."

But Gen Nkunda said the way to resolve the current crisis was through negotiation.

"If he [President Joseph Kabila] refuses to talk now he will not be able to rule Congo and to lead it," he said.

"We have to liberate Congo. Congo has to be free and to develop."

'Criminal'

Gen Nkunda has always said he is fighting to protect his Tutsi community from attacks by Rwandan Hutu rebels, who fled to DR Congo after Rwanda's 1994 genocide. He accuses the army of working with the Hutu forces.

He spoke to the BBC at his mountain headquarters, three hours' drive outside Goma.

BBC World Affairs correspondent Mark Doyle says the threat may just be aimed at strengthening Gen Nkunda's political position.

But he says it raises the stakes at an extremely tense time, when other African countries are also threatening to intervene on the side of the elected Congolese government.

In the most recent clashes, Gen Nkunda's forces have taken a series of towns and villages near Goma, the capital of DR Congo's North Kivu province.

The UN has accused both sides of war crimes, following the reported killing of several civilians in the eastern town of Kiwanja last week.

Gen Nkunda claimed his forces had simply been responding to attacks.

"Since we declared the ceasefire, we were attacked around six times or seven times," he said.

"We are reacting only, but the ceasefire is there."

On Sunday, Southern African leaders pledged to provide military advice to the Congolese army and said they would send a peacekeeping force if and when necessary.

Rwanda, which is led by Tutsi President Paul Kagame, has denied claims that it has been backing Gen Nkunda. But it has twice invaded DR Congo, saying it wanted to act against the Hutu rebels.

The UN has 17,000 peacekeepers in DR Congo, its largest mission in the world, but only a few hundred peacekeepers are in the areas affected by the latest violence.

FORCES AROUND GOMA

CNDP: Gen Nkunda's Tutsi rebels - 6,000 fighters
FDLR: Rwandan Hutus - 6-7,000
Mai Mai: pro-government militia - 3,500
Monuc: UN peacekeepers - 1,000 in Goma, 6,000 in North Kivu (17,000 nationwide)
DRC army - 90,000 (nationwide)
Source: UN, military experts
Click into the BBC's report to view short video of Laurent Nkunda issuing warning to President Kabila.

DRC:  CNDP leader Nkunda

Photo: CNDP rebel group leader Laurent Nkunda (BBC)