M23 reject new Amnesty report on death toll, rape
March 23 Movement (M23) rebel group has vehemently rejected a report from a recent investigation by Amnesty International.
The report released on Friday revealed that members of the M23 rebel group killed at least twenty men and raped scores of women and girls in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
According to the report, issued by the group’s regional director for East and Southern Africa, Tigere Chagutah, survivors and other witnesses said that between 21st-30th November 2022, fighters for the Rwandan-backed M23 group summarily killed at least 20 men and raped at least 66 women and girls, mainly in Kishishe, a small town located about 100km north of Goma, the capital of North-Kivu province.
However, according to the M23 Movement Political Spokesperson, Lawrence Kanyuka, the Amnesty International report is based on testimonies gathered from people whose claims do not reflect the reality on the ground.
In a press statement, he describes the allegation of rape as premeditated and a deliberate way to hide the truth about Kishishe.
Kanyuka calls on the international and national community to push for an independent inquiry that will shed light on what happened that day in Kishishe between November 21 to 30, 2022.
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