OWN CORRESPONDENT, Johannesburg | Monday 12.15PM.
THH embattled Democratic Republic of Congo leader, Laurent Kabila, has claimed that Ugandan troops and tanks have invaded the east of his country. Kabila has repeated his threats against Rwanda, saying Rwandan Tutsis, backed by Congolese Tutsis and now Ugandans, are seeking to carve a “Tutsi empire” from eastern DRC.
Rwandan president Pasteur Bizimingu and Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni have both denied any involvement in the Congo conflict, which broke out 10 days ago when Congolese Tutsi factions in the DRC army rebelled and vowed to depose Kabila. The Congolese Tutsis, or Banyamulenge, were instrumental in bringing Kabila to power in the campaign which toppled former dictator Mobutu Sese Seko.
The rebels hold the towns of Bukavu, Goma and Kivu in the east, and were fighting for control of Kisanjani late last week. A hijacked plane carrying 400 armed rebels flew into Kitona, where there is a large military barracks. Kitona, in the south-west, is close to the capital, Kinshasa. Foreigners and aid workers have fled from Bukavu into Rwanda, fearing an escalation of the fighting there.
A seven-nation summit held in Zimbabwe at the weekend to address the crisis in the Great lakes region was reported by its host, Zimbawean president Robert Mugabe, to have failed to resolve the DRC conflict.