The Congo River Alliance and March 23 Coalition forces have made more progress in their advancement in eastern DR Congo after taking control of the city of Nyabibwe in the South Kivu Province.
Having completely seized the neighboring North Kivu region, now the combined AFC plus M23 rebel forces are making major strides in South Kivu with new positions being seized on a daily basis.
The rebels took control of Nyabibwe following intense fighting at the hills of Nyangantwa and Chanjwe with the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (FARDC).
The city of Nyabibwe, located in the Kalehe territory, is a strategic point in South Kivu as it is placed on the main national highway Number 2 leading to the provincial capital, Bukavu.
This new advancement could spell more problems for the government forces (FARDC) as the rebels will most likely attempt to take control of Bukavu.
In another development, the new AFC/M23 politico-military coalition state of North Kivu has appointed new heads of the provincial governorate as it continues to set up its arms of government in the region.
The leadership of the AFC/M23 movement announced the appointment of the new governor and his two deputy governors as well as the mayor of provincial capital city of Goma city.
The new Governor of North Kivu Province is Bahati Musanga Joseph with the first Deputy Governor being Manzi Ngarambe Willy who will be in charge of political, administrative and legal affairs.
The second Deputy Governor appointed is Mr. Amani Bahati Shaddrak and he will be in charge of Economic, Financial and Development Affairs.
The new leaders have since taken over offices previously occupied by the Tshisekedi regime’s officials before the AFC/M23 took control of the province.
Soi far more than 3000 people have been killed in the ongoing clashes in DR Congo.
On the other hand, there are reports from the DRC, that members of the country’s National Assembly are planning to move a motion for president Félix Tshisekedi to fire his Deputy Prime Minister for Defense Guy Kabongo Muadiamvita.
At the hearing held late on Tuesday evening by the defense committee of the National Assembly, Muadiamvita failed to attend the emergency meeting which angered the committee members.
Certain MPs had harsh words for Muadiamvita and further demanded for his resignation from the government for “incompetence” or compel Tshisekedi to dismiss him through a motion in the lower house of representatives.
Under Muadiamvita’s tenure as Defence Minister which started last year in May, the DR Congo army has lost control of the entire region of North Kivu to the M23 rebels who are now escalating into neighboring South Kivu Province.
Meanwhile at least 20 peacekeepers, including 14 from South Africa and 3 from Malawi, lost their lives in the capture of Goma, the capital of North Kivu province, by M23 rebels. The city fell after intense fighting, with reports of widespread looting and displacement of civilians.
The incident has sparked international concern, with the DR Congo severing diplomatic ties with Rwanda which is being accused of supporting the M23 rebels.