KIGALI, Rwanda

Congolese rebel groups that include the M23 (AFC/M23) described French President Emmanuel Macron’s call Thursday to reopen Goma International Airport in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo as “untimely,” warning France to act with caution in its decisions.

The rebels seized the airport earlier this year as fighters swept through North Kivu’s provincial capital, Goma.

Speaking at the International Conference for Peace and Prosperity in the Great Lakes Region in Paris, Macron announced that the airport would be reopened for humanitarian flights in the coming weeks, along with secure corridors for aid delivery.

But rebel spokesperson Lawrence Kanyuka, in a statement, said that such action should only be undertaken within the framework of ongoing peace negotiations between the Congolese government and M23 rebels mediated by Qatar in Doha.

“The AFC/M23 urges France not to fall prey to humanitarian lobbies that have enriched themselves at the expense of former displaced persons in the vicinity of the city of Goma,” the statement said.

“France is urged to act with caution in its conduct, decisions, and positions, so as not to inadvertently revive memories of its difficult and tragic past among the people of the Great Lakes region.”

During the conference, Macron also announced that €1.5 billion ($1.7 billion) in international aid has been collected "for the most vulnerable populations."

Nearly 7 million people in the Democratic Republic of Congo are internally displaced, according to the government.

However, the rebels claimed “there is no longer any humanitarian emergency” in the areas under their control, "since all displaced persons have returned to their places of origin."

The rebel groups called on the international community not to grant concessions to the regime, which it said violates its ceasefire commitments by pursuing a military solution to a political conflict.

The M23 rebel group, at the center of the conflict in eastern Congo, reemerged in 2021.

The group controls significant territory, including the provincial capitals of Goma and Bukavu, which it seized earlier this year.

The UN, Kinshasa, and others accuse neighboring Rwanda of supporting the M23, which Kigali denies.

The rebels and the government signed the Declaration of Principles ceasefire deal in Doha, Qatar, in July.

But fighting continues between government forces and the M23 rebels, with each side accusing the other of violating the ceasefire.