KAGAME ADMITS DRC PLUNDER GOES THROUGH RWANDA

With the Kigali-backed M23 rebels making rapid gains in eastern DRC, here’s a flashback to 2022 - when Rwanda’s president, Paul Kagame, openly admitted that plundered loot from the neighbouring Congo went through his country. But instead of taking responsibility, he attempts to deflect blame.

He urges his audience to focus on the final destinations of the stolen minerals - he cites Dubai, Brussels, Tel Aviv - claiming that if Kigali stopped the flow, there’d be trouble for Kigali. But this lame excuse is a calculated deception: Rwanda isn’t merely a transit point, it’s one of the biggest profiteers from Congo’s suffering.

Despite having almost no mineral reserves of its own, Rwanda has become one of the world's leading exporters of coltan and gold, all of which are overwhemingly mined in the DRC.

Moreover, the UN has pointed the finger at Rwanda, saying there is strong evidence it’s backing the atrocities-committing M23, and has sent up to 4,000 of its own soldiers over the border to assist the rebels in their deadly mine-grabbing rampage.

So while Kagame might be right that the buyers of plundered Congolese wealth are guilty of fanning the war, his shameless attempt to pass the buck ignores the fact that Rwanda is a central player in this blood-stained supply chain. His hands are far from clean.