Kinshasa: South Africa has reinforced its military presence in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) following the deaths of 14 of its soldiers in recent clashes with rebels, according to political and diplomatic sources.
Recent days have seen an influx of additional troops and military equipment into the conflict-hit nation, raising concerns about the potential for a wider war in the already volatile Great Lakes region. This area has been plagued by violence for decades, including genocide, cross-border conflicts, and numerous armed uprisings.
Flight data indicated that transport aircraft traveled from South Africa to Lubumbashi in southern DRC. An airport official in Lubumbashi confirmed the arrival of military planes last week.
Chris Hattingh, a South African lawmaker and defense spokesperson for the Democratic Alliance, stated that reports suggest between 700 and 800 South African National Defence Force (SANDF) soldiers had been flown to Lubumbashi. However, he noted that details about the deployment remained unclear, as South Africa’s parliamentary defense committee had not been briefed.
A spokesperson for the SANDF said on Friday that they were not aware of the deployment and declined to provide further comment. Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the DRC’s army neither confirmed nor denied the reports.
Lubumbashi is located roughly 1,500 kilometers (930 miles) south of Goma, a key city near the Rwandan border that was recently seized by M23 rebels. The offensive has resulted in more than 2,000 deaths and displaced hundreds of thousands of people.
South Africa is believed to have approximately 3,000 troops stationed in the DRC. These forces are part of both the United Nations peacekeeping mission and a regional Southern African force supporting the DRC’s military in its fight against the M23 insurgency.
