Hundreds of congolese took to the streets of Kinshasa, the Congolese capital, to protest Rwanda’s alleged support for the M23 rebel group.
The NDSCI civil society group organized the protests.
Senegalese President Macky Sall, the African Union’s chairman, called Rwandan and Congolese leaders on Monday to try to defuse tensions between Kigali and Kinshasa.
Both sides accuse the other of supporting rebel groups in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Protesters on Monday also demanded the expulsion of Rwanda’s ambassador and waved banners with nationalistic slogans.
Senegal President Macky Sall, who chairs the African Union, had called for dialogue between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda on Sunday, as tensions between the two countries rose due to the resurgence of the M23 rebel group.
Kinshasa has blamed Rwanda for the latest rebel offensive, citing the rebels’ heavy firepower as proof of outside support. Rwanda denies this, claiming that the fighting is an intra-Congolese conflict.
“I am seriously concerned by the rising tension between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
“I call for calm and dialogue between the two countries, and for the peaceful resolution of the crisis with the support of regional mechanisms and the African Union,” Sall said on Twitter.
RwandAir announced on Saturday that it was canceling flights to the DRC after Congolese authorities suspended the carrier and summoned Kigali’s ambassador.
