Julius Malema (@julius_s_malema on X) spoke sharply about Rwanda and Uganda following 14 South African soldiers being k*lled as Rwanda- and Uganda-backed M23 militia entered the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo’s Goma city on 27 January.
The Economic Freedom Fighters party (@EFFsouthafrica) president said during a 3 February press conference that Kagame is not a friend but a puppet furthering Western interests, such as the migrant-relocation deal with the United Kingdom and Rwandan military deployments to Mozambique to secure French oil company TotalEnergie’s interests.
The UN issued an experts report in June 2024 that provided detailed evidence of Rwanda and Uganda’s support for M23.
The fighting since M23 entered Goma city in eastern DRC has k*lled more than 900 people as of 3 February, according to the UN. Congolese government spokesman Patrick Muyaya said on 1 February that the figures could be much higher since the rebels ‘asked the population to clean the streets of Goma.’ The fighting has injured more than 2,880 people.
The Western-backed, three-decade-long war over natural resources k*lled at least 6 million Congolese by 2010 and internally displaced about 7 million as of last year’s figures. Just last month, M23’s success in seizing land in eastern DRC caused 500,000 people to flee their homes. The group entering Goma reportedly led hundreds of thousands to abandon the city.
Sources
EFF presser
Rwanda UK deal
https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-9568/
Rwanda France deal on Mozambique
https://www.csmonitor.com/World/Africa/2021/1220/Rwanda-keeps-the-peace-in-Mozambique.-Why
Goma wartime stats
Three-decade resource war
https://www.caritas.org/2010/02/six-million-dead-in-congos-war
https://drcongo.iom.int/en/news/internal-displacement-overview-2024-published
Flee homes
https://www.dw.com/en/dr-congo-people-flee-homes-2025/a-71440536
https://www.cnn.com/2025/01/28/africa/violence-erupts-dr-congo-m23-goma-intl/index.html