Congo-Kinshasa: Ex-DR Congo President Kabila to Lead New 'Politico-Military' Alliance With M23 Rebels
[RFI] Former Democratic Republic of Congo president Joseph Kabila has joined forces with the Rwanda-backed M23 armed group to lead a new political and military alliance, marking his most direct intervention yet in the conflict that has gripped the country's east.
Former DRC president Joseph Kabila is forming a joint political and military alliance with the M23 rebel group, a significant step in his recent involvement in the eastern conflict. The alliance was unveiled during a joint press conference at Kabila's residence in Goma, the main city of eastern DRC, where the M23 has held control since January 2025.
Dubbed the Front pour la Refondation de la Nation (FRN), the organization aims to put an end to tyranny by any means necessary. Kabila will lead the movement, with senior M23 figures serving as his deputies. This move marks a sharp escalation in Kabila's confrontation with his successor, Felix Tshisekedi, and brings together one of the country's most prominent political figures with an armed movement that controls vast areas of eastern DRC.
Kabila, who ruled the country from 2001 to 2019, was recently sentenced to death in absentia for his alleged complicity with the M23. The move comes as political attention shifts to 2028, when Tshisekedi is set to complete his term.
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