US sanctions Rwanda for using child soldiers in DR Congo

by KPFA Evening News/Ann Garrison, 10.05.2013

Mon, Oct 7, 2013 10:05PM

The U.S. has sanctioned Rwanda for supporting the M23 militia which recruits child soldiers in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, which could mean the end of U.S. military aid to its longtime military partner. M23's chain of command is headed by Rwandan Defense Minister James Kabarebe in Rwanda's capital Kigali, though Kabarebe frequently crosses the Rwanda/Congo border to meet with M23. Many Rwandans and Congolese welcomed the U.S. sanctions as a first step, but noted that there has been abundant evidence of Rwanda's cross border war of aggression in Congo for many years.

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According to the 2012 UN Group of Experts Report on the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwandan Defense Minister James Kabarebe, right, commands the M23 militia
in Congo from Rwanda's capital Kigali and frequently crosses the border to meet with
M23 officers and militia men. Kabarebe, in turn, responds to the command of Rwandan
President and Commander-in-Chief Paul Kagame.

For transcript, see http://www.anngarrison.com/audio/2013/10/06/466/us-sanctions-long-term-military-partner-rwanda-for-child-soldier-use.

For more information: http://www.anngarrison.com/audio/2013/10/0...

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