UN peacekeepers launch phased pullout from eastern DR Congo

KIGALI, Rwanda 

The UN on Wednesday launched a phased withdrawal of its peacekeeping troops from the Democratic Republic of Congo, in line with the country’s demand.  

In a statement, the UN Organization Stabilization Mission in Congo (MONUSCO) said it handed over its first base at Kamanyola, on the border with Burundi, to the national police, launching its phased withdrawal from eastern DR Congo. 

The handover ceremony was held in the presence of government and UN officials, MONUSCO said in a brief statement on X. 

Gen. Jean-Bosco Galenga, who represented DR Congo’s commissioner general of police, said at the ceremony: “The replacement of a military force by the police is an indicator of the return of peace.” 

The withdrawal will take place in three phases, starting with the departure of peacekeepers from South Kivu by the end of April, according to MONUSCO head Bintou Keita. 

It will be followed by the pullout of UN peacekeepers from North Kivu and Ituri. 

The gradual withdrawal from the mission is expected to be completed by Dec. 31. 

MONUSCO has been deployed in eastern DR Congo since 1999. 

Last year, speaking at the 78th UN General Assembly session in New York, Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi expressed disappointment with the effectiveness of the heavily funded UN mission of about 15,000 peacekeepers in stemming violence. 

Thousands of people in the two most conflict-affected eastern DR Congo provinces of North Kivu and Ituri live in camps. 

A series of protests have erupted in DR Congo against the UN peacekeeping force, which people accuse of failing to curb violence by multiple armed groups.