DRC Releases 15 M23 Detainees via Uganda

KINSHASA/GOMA: The Democratic Republic of Congo has released 15 detainees to the AFC-M23 rebel movement through Uganda under a prisoner-release mechanism agreed as part of the Doha peace process, the two sides said in separate statements.

The Congolese government said the detainees were released under commitments made in a mechanism signed on Sept. 14, 2025, and were transferred from Beni to AFC-M23 between Aug. 6 and 7 with the International Committee of the Red Cross acting as a neutral intermediary.

The detainees transited through Uganda with the assistance of Ugandan authorities before being handed over to AFC-M23, Kinshasa said.

AFC-M23 confirmed receiving the 15 people in Bunagana on Aug. 7 and thanked the ICRC and Uganda for facilitating the transfer.

“We also express our appreciation to the Ugandan authorities for the assistance and facilitation they provided to the beneficiaries during their transit through Uganda,” AFC-M23 said in a statement signed by spokesperson Lawrence Kanyuka.

The group said the detainees had been held in facilities including Makala Prison, Ndolo Prison and military intelligence detention centres.

AFC-M23 said nine of those released were among 768 people it had submitted to mediators for release. It said one of the remaining six was a Ugandan national with no connection to the movement, while five others detained in Katanga, Ituri and Kinshasa had not appeared on its original list.

The rebel group described the release as encouraging but insufficient and called on Kinshasa to provide a complete list of detainees still being held and a timetable for their release.

It also said it had made several thousand Congolese soldiers and allied fighters available to the ICRC for transfer to Kinshasa, but accused the government of refusing to receive them.

The Congolese government said the release demonstrated its commitment to implementing the Doha agreements, but accused AFC-M23 and Rwanda of continued ceasefire violations and hostile actions.

Kinshasa called for the operationalisation of the Expanded Joint Verification Mechanism to independently investigate alleged violations on the ground.

Both sides said they remained committed to the Doha process, which includes ceasefire arrangements, confidence-building measures and negotiations aimed at reaching a broader peace agreement for eastern Congo.