M23 rebels in Goma: gains to boost illicit mineral trade through Rwanda, analysts say – by Sonia Rolley and Felix Njini (Reuters – January 28, 2025)

https://www.reuters.com/

Jan 28 (Reuters) – A lightning advance in Congo’s mineral-rich eastern borderlands is set to boost the M23 rebellion’s illegal mining revenues, with analysts predicting a further surge in illicit trade in minerals including coltan and gold through neighbouring Rwanda.

The Rwanda-backed insurgency entered Goma, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo’s largest city, this week, marking a major turning point in a conflict with government forces that has raised fears of a spillover into a broader regional war.

The rebels, which Rwanda denies supporting, have long been funded at least in part by the illicit mineral trade. Those revenue flows intensified after M23 – the latest in a long line of Tutsi-led rebellions – seized the coltan-rich Rubaya area in April, U.N. experts found.

For the rest of this article: https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/congo-rebel-gains-boost-illicit-mineral-trade-through-rwanda-analysts-say-2025-01-28/