(Bloomberg) -- Militants operating in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo are violating the terms of a peace accord that was signed in late July and the civilian population is suffering as a result, the head of a regional trading bloc said.
“Armed groups continue to carry out sporadic attacks on the armed forces of the DRC and civilians, leading to dire humanitarian conditions,” Elias Magosi, the executive secretary of the 16-nation Southern African Development Community, told a meeting of regional heads of state in Harare, Zimbabwe’s capital, on Thursday. “We are gravely concerned about the reported violations of the cease-fire by some parties to the agreement, which must be condemned in the strongest of terms.”
Congo accuses Rwanda of backing an insurgency by the M23 rebel group, an allegation its neighbor denies. The two nations agreed to a truce at a July 30 meeting overseen by Angola, and it came into effect on Aug. 4.
SADC dispatched troops led by South Africa to eastern Congo to help maintain peace. Their mandate is set to expire on Dec. 15, and the group’s leaders will discuss whether to extend it at their meeting in Harare.
“We had hoped that the cease-fire would create a conducive environment for enhanced solution-focused dialog between the parties, while also enabling a seamless flow of humanitarian support to the people affected by the armed conflict,” Magosi said.
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