US sanctions Rwanda's military and top officials over support for M23 rebels in Congo

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KINSHASA, Congo (AP) — The U.S. imposed sanctions Monday on the Rwandan Defence Forces and four of its senior officials for supporting the March 23 Movement, an armed group responsible for human rights abuses in the central African nation of Congo.

The latest penalties come after a U.S.-mediated peace agreement was signed in December by Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi and Rwandan President Paul Kagame in Washington, alongside U.S. President Donald Trump.

Trump at the time praised the leaders for their courage, as the deal also opened the region’s critical mineral reserves to the U.S. government and U.S. companies.

Despite the agreement, fighting between the two parties continues on several fronts in eastern Congo, claiming numerous civilian and military casualties.

M23 is the most prominent of about 100 armed factions vying for control in eastern Congo, near the border with Rwanda. The conflict has created one of the world’s most significant humanitarian crises, with more than 7 million people displaced, according to the U.N. agency for refugees.

Congo, the U.S. and U.N. experts accuse Rwanda of backing M23, which has grown from hundreds of members in 2021 to around 6,500 fighters, according to the U.N.

The U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control alleged that M23’s offensives would not have been possible without the active support of the Rwandan government and key senior officials.

Included in Monday’s sanctions are Vincent Nyakarundi, the RDF’s army chief of staff; Ruki Karusisi, a major general; Mubarakh Muganga, chief of defense staff; and Stanislas Gashugi, special operations force commander.

Rwandan government spokesperson Yolande Makolo said in a statement Monday that the sanctions “unjustly” target Rwanda and “misrepresent the reality and distort the facts of the conflict” in eastern Congo. She accused Congo of violating the peace agreement by allegedly conducting “indiscriminate” drone attacks and ground offensives.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement that the department "will use all tools at its disposal to ensure that the parties to the Washington Accords uphold their obligations.”

“We expect the immediate withdrawal of Rwanda Defence Force troops, weapons and equipment,” Bessent said.

Thomas Pigott, a U.S. State Department spokesman, said M23 “is responsible for horrific human rights abuses, including summary executions and violence against civilians, including women and children.”

M23 is already under U.S. sanctions since 2013.

The Congolese government and M23 are in ongoing negotiations for a peace deal, mediated by Qatar and the U.S.

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Associated Press reporters Fatima Hussein in Washington and Khaled Kazziha in Nairobi, Kenya contributed to this report.