City Press reports that the end is in sight for South African soldiers who, for 64 days, have been held under the watchful eye of M23 rebels in Goma and Sake in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
An agreement was concluded on Friday between a southern African military delegation and the rebel leaders that the regional force's soldiers and their equipment could be withdrawn. However, recent history has taught the soldiers to be weary of the rebels. One of the SA soldiers told Rapport: “It's an agreement on a piece of paper and these are rebels. We don't let our vigilance slip for a moment, because they are afraid of us and the only way they could control us until now was to keep us locked up.” Friday's meeting was the first time since the M23's advance to Goma and the major battle to gain control of the airport in January that any SA generals could see the soldiers. The SA National Defence Force chief, General Rudzani Maphwanya, and the rebel leaders visited the soldiers together. Under the agreement, the southern Africa regional force (SamiDRC) soldiers will be allowed to withdraw with all their equipment. This was previously a major point of contention. The M23 also agreed that the SADC could repair the Goma runway to facilitate the withdrawal flights. The runway was damaged in places during the fighting. The M23 also parked vehicles on the runway to ensure no aircraft could land. The decisions from Friday’s meeting will likely need to be ratified by the SADC member countries before the withdrawal proceeds.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Erika Gibson at News24 (subscription or trial registration required)
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