OWN CORRESPONDENT, Kinshasa | Saturday 5.00pm.
DEMOCRATIC Republic of Congo (DRC) President Laurent Kabila called late on Friday for total war against neighbouring Rwanda, the main backer of a 10-month-old rebellion against his government.
“The Congolese people must arm themselves. The war must be total,” Kabila said on state radio after talks with Namibian President Sam Nujoma, who has sent troops to fight alongside government forces.
Kabila said Kampala was ready to sign a ceasefire, but only on the basis of United Nations Security Council resolution 1234, which calls for the departure of “uninvited” forces from the DRC.
“The Rwandans who believe they can absorb the Congo will be absorbed themselves by the vastness of its territory. Encircled from behind they will be wiped out,” Kabila added.
He made no comment on last week’s capture of the town of Manono in the southwestern province of Katanga by rebel and Rwandan troops.
Kabila spoke as the three rebel groups were engaged in a third day of talks on Friday in a bid to harmonise their positions ahead of a regional peace summit due to be held in Lusaka later this month.
Rebel sources told AFP that the heads of state of Rwanda, Uganda and Tanzania were consulted Thursday before the talks resumed on Friday morning in the western Uganda town of Kabale. They were due to conclude Friday night.
Attending the talks are representatives of the Ugandan and Rwandan governments, who back different factions of the rebels, as well as neutral Tanzania, which is aiding diplomatic efforts to end the war.
Burundi also supports the rebels but denies having committed troops.
Kabila is backed principally by Namibia and Zimbabwe. — AFP