The AFC/M23 movement on Sunday, September 14, formally reintegrated 7,437 new commandos composed of former Congolese government soldiers, Mai Mai and Wazalendo militia, alongside newly recruited members. Many of these fighters defected to the rebel movement during the capture of several cities in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, including Goma and Bukavu. The ceremony took place at the Rumangabo Training Centre in North Kivu Province and was presided over by the group’s military leader, Maj. Gen. Sultani Makenga, and political leader Corneille Nangaa. According to the movement, the new

The AFC/M23 movement on Sunday, September 14, formally reintegrated 7,437 new commandos composed of former Congolese government soldiers, Mai Mai and Wazalendo militia, alongside newly recruited members. Many of these fighters defected to the rebel movement during the capture of several cities in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, including Goma and Bukavu. The ceremony took place at the Rumangabo Training Centre in North Kivu Province and was presided over by the group’s military leader, Maj. Gen. Sultani Makenga, and political leader Corneille Nangaa. According to the movement, the new forces have completed six months of intensive military training. ALSO READ: DRC, AFC/M23 sign prisoner exchange mechanism In his address, Gen. Makenga praised the resilience and determination of the recruits, stressing their preparedness to serve with discipline and loyalty. "You are now the soldiers of the Congolese Revolutionary Army (ARC)," he told the thousands of troops assembled at the Rumangabo base. He further described the ARC as the liberation army for the country and sharply criticized the Congolese government under President Félix Tshisekedi. "The country has been destroyed by the Kinshasa government led by Tshisekedi. It's a government that is killing its citizens over how they look and their tribe. The government is bombing villages, everything is being destroyed, even the army," Makenga said. He accused the government of weakening the national army by mixing it with irregular forces. "The army has been turned into a rubbish bin. They mix the army with armed citizens, now called Wazalendo, they mix it with the FDLR; they mix them with Imbonerakure, who behave like Interahamwe. And they mix them with soldiers from other countries. Tshisekedi hired mercenaries and these are treated better than the Congolese. He has no respect for the country, the army or the Congolese people. He doesn't fit to lead Congo," he added. On the same occasion, political leader Corneille Nangaa urged those still undecided to join the movement, describing it as an opportunity to rebuild the country.

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