UN TO SANCTION M 23 MOVEMENT IN THE DRC

The United Nations Security Council has stated that it’s intended putting sanctions on the leaders of the M 23 rebel Movement in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Rwanda has been accused by the UN expert group of funding the group in the Central African Bloc to destabilize the Democratic Republic of Congo but Rwanda vehemently denied the report and threatened to sue the world body for lack of evidence to substantiate the claim.

Rwanda has been elected to the UN Security Council as a permanent member which many see as a way to solve the Rebels activities in the DRC

The non-binding Security Council statement condemns the M23 militia for all its attacks on the civilian population, United Nations peacekeepers and humanitarian actors, as well as its abuses of human rights, including summary executions, sexual and gender-based violence and large-scale recruitment and use of child soldiers.

It also expresses deep concern at reports that external support "continues to be provided to the M23 by neighboring countries, and demands that such support "cease immediately.

The March 23 Movement, which is abbreviated as M 23 was part of the Army of the Democratic Republic of Congo but broke away from the Army with about 300 hundred soldiers and became a rebel group as a results of what the leaders of the group describe as ``poor condition of service`` given to them by the DRC Government.

The rebels have been active in the North Kivu province in the DRC, fighting government forces in the area which sometimes scares local residents to flee the area as a result of the heavy fighting.