Qatar hosts talks between Congo and Rwanda, also meets with rebels

Qatar hosted a second round of talks on Friday between Congo and Rwanda and separately met with representatives of the Rwandan-backed rebellion waging an insurgency in eastern Congo, four sources told Reuters.

Democratic Republic of Congo President Felix Tshisekedi and his Rwandan counterpart Paul Kagame met last week in Doha for their first talks since M23 rebels stepped up an offensive there in January.

Congolese and Rwandan officials held talks on Friday, while M23 representatives met separately with Qatari mediators, said two sources from the Congolese government and two from the rebels.

The talks between Tshisekedi and Kagame, and their subsequent call for a ceasefire, provided a glimmer of hope for a de-escalation of eastern Congo’s biggest conflict in decades.

But M23 dismissed those calls, saying peace could only be achieved through direct talks with Kinshasa, and continued its offensive with the capture of a strategic town.

M23 representatives met Qatari mediators in Doha on Friday and did not hold talks with the Congolese or Rwandan officials also in town, said the sources, two from the Congolese government and two from the rebels.

The content of the discussions was not clear. Qatar’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.