Ex-DRC President Kabila’s alliance with M23 rebels: Why it matters

Former President Joseph Kabila of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has officially allied with armed rebel groups, raising fears of further escalation of an ongoing conflict in the country’s east that has already killed thousands.Kabila on Monday launched a new political-military coalition to replace the M23-AFC alliance, which is fighting government forces and controls swaths of territory.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4Former DR Congo President Kabila joins M23 rebels in a new coalitionlist 2 of 4Kabila sentenced to death: What it means for DRC and what’s nextlist 3 of 4‘I’ve never been counted’: DR Congo’s first census in 42 yearslist 4 of 4DRC’s constitutional battle: The fight over the 2028 voteend of listThe new movement will “put an end to tyranny by any means necessary, including the use of force”, coalition spokesperson Claude Ibalanky said, in what appeared to be a chilling threat to the government in Kinshasa.It comes precisely a year after Kabila was sentenced to death by a military court for alleged links to the rebel groups.The M23 crisis has racked the mineral-rich eastern DRC for nearly 15 years. The United Nations says more than 7.8 million p...