US condemns Rwanda’s support of armed M23 rebels in eastern Congo and calls for troop withdrawal

KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — The U.S. has condemned Rwanda’s support of the armed M23 group in eastern Congo, whose rebellion has caused the displacement of hundreds of thousands of people, and called on the rebel group to “cease hostilities.” The U.S. State Department in a statement Saturday strongly criticized “the worsening violence … caused by the actions of the Rwanda-backed, U.S.- and UN-sanctioned M23 armed group.” It called on Rwanda to immediately withdraw all its forces from Congo). It also urged the rebels to retreat from their current positions near two urban areas in Congo’s North Kivu province. This is likely to put pressure on Rwanda, whose government has repeatedly denied any links to the M23 group.