Madar (Kinshasa) - The government of the Democratic Republic of Congo on Friday, October 17, 2026, accused former president Joseph Kabila of planning a "general attack" on the country, days after he took the lead of a new politico-military coalition that includes M23 rebels, AFP reported.
Kabila "has decided to formalise his widespread attack against the Republic," government spokesman Patrick Muyaya told AFP, adding that "the choice to take up arms means killing Congolese in order to try to conquer territories." "The players remain the same, the nature of the movement remains the same," he said, describing the move as an attempt to give the rebellion "a new face."
The new coalition, the Front for the Refoundation of the Nation (FRN), was announced on Monday evening in Goma, the main city of North Kivu province, which has been under M23 control since January 2025. Led by Kabila with M23 leaders as his deputies, it replaces the Congo River Alliance (AFC) and says it aims to end "tyranny by any means, including force," according to AFP and Al Jazeera English.
Kabila, 55, ruled the country from 2001 to 2019 and was sentenced to death in absentia a year ago for "complicity" with the M23. Kinshasa and international actors accuse Rwanda of backing the group, which Kigali denies. In a speech posted online on Friday, Kabila criticised the government as "motivated solely by its own perpetuation in power."
Among the reactions, former National Assembly speaker Vital Kamerhe urged the coalition's leaders to lay down their arms and choose dialogue, saying "nothing" could justify taking up weapons against one's own country. The FRN said in a statement on Wednesday that it was taking over the AFC's commitments, "in particular those entered into as part of the Doha negotiations," Al Jazeera reported.
