Photo Gallery A Brief Respite in Congo
Congolese M23 rebel president Jean Marie Runiga posing at his hideout ahead of weekend talks with the Congolese government. Runiga says the fight is not over yet, but many hope that the coming negotiations might produce a lasting ceasefire.
On Nov. 20, the Tutsi rebel group M23 captured Goma, a provincial capital in eastern Congo that is home to roughly 1 million people. Here, rebels are seen near Goma two days before its capture.
Sultani Makenga heads M23's military forces. The United Nations has referred to Makenga and the group's other commanders as "notorious killers." However, group officials claim that they represent the rights of the hundreds of thousands of Tutsi who have fled violence in Congo and are now living in camps in Rwanda, Uganda and Tanzania, and that they are fighting for better governance and democracy in Congo.
A M23 rally in Goma on November 21: Many believe that M23 is primarily interested in occupying mineral-rich areas of eastern Congo and is receiving military and other support from its eastern neighbor Rwanda.
M23 withdrew from Goma on Monday, on the condition that Congo's government negotiate with them. Talks between M23 and the Congolese government were scheduled to begin in Kampala, the capital of Uganda, on Friday, December 7. However, M23 president Jean-Marie Runiga told the AFP on Friday that delays were expected, and that the talks might actually start on Sunday.
