08 11 13 Reuters: Ugandan source says Congo rebel commander held in Uganda

 

Sultani
Makenga's whereabouts had been unclear since Tuesday's declaration by the M23
that it was ending its 20-month insurgency in eastern Democratic Republic of
Congo, worrying some that he could be hiding with plans to regroup.

His
surrender will be seen as a major achievement for the Congolese army, with the
backing of a U.N. force, as it strives to restore calm in a region racked by
war for two decades.

But
analysts have warned against too much optimism for a sustained peace in the
mineral-rich east of the vast nation, where a plethora of other groups still
operate.

"I
can confirm to you he (Makenga) is with us," the senior Ugandan officer,
who asked not to be named, told Reuters.

"He
surrendered to us yesterday (Wednesday) and we're holding him somewhere and
some other commanders of his," he said, adding the group of rebels would
be held at an undisclosed location until a peace agreement was signed.

The
Congolese government had no immediate comment.

The M23
group declared an end to its military campaign and said it would seek political
talks after Congolese troops routed them from their hide-outs with U.N.
support.

Captain
Ronald Kakurungu, a spokeman for Uganda's army, said 1,500 M23
rebels had surrendered and disarmed.

That
figure is higher than most previous estimates of the strength of the M23, which
experts had generally believed to have dwindled in recent months to a few
hundred.

Bertrand
Bisimwa, M23's political leader, did not confirm any numbers but said in a
statement fighters had crossed into Uganda as they felt unsafe joining a disarmament
process run by the same U.N. and government forces they had fought against.

While
recognising the successes of the joint U.N.-Congo force, analysts said the
defeat of the M23 did not mean that a return of order in Congo's east
was assured.

"Just
because you think you've beaten back the M23 rabble rousers in the east, do you
really think it can become a stable country? I don't think so," said
Martyn Davies, chief executive of the Johannesburg-based Frontier Advisory.

"This
time next year, you'll be looking at an 'M24'," he said.

 

FDLR
on the radar

U.N.
spokesman Farhan Haq said that the U.N. mission in Congo had warned other armed groups
that they would face resistance if they sought to take areas abandoned by M23.

The M23,
which U.N. experts and Western powers had said was backed by Rwanda,
initially launched its campaign when it said a 2009 peace deal with a previous
Tutsi-led group of rebel soldiers had not been honoured by the Congolese
government.

Rwanda has been involved in several conflicts
in Congo
over the years but denied backing the M23.

Briefing
the 15-member Security Council on Congo,
French U.N. Ambassador Gerard Araud said Rwandan Hutu FDLR rebels were likely
to be among the next targets in Congo.

Some FDLR
fighters were part of the militia that took part in Rwanda's
1994 genocide and subsequently fled into Congo's east. Their presence there
and previous collaboration with Congolese forces have been used as
justification by Rwanda
for interventions in its much larger but weaker neighbour.

Millions
of people have died from violence, disease and hunger since the 1990s as dozens
of rebel groups have fought for control of eastern Congo's deposits of gold, diamonds,
copper, cobalt and uranium.

Last
month, Washington said it would block U.S. military aid to Rwanda
because of its "support for the M23, a rebel group which continues to
actively recruit and abduct children" and posed a threat to the stability
of Congo.

A senior U.S. official said on Wednesday that Washington would consider resuming military aid to Rwanda if it
found Rwandan support for M23 had ended.