The United States government leveled fresh sanctions today against senior military commanders from two prominent armed factions operating in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), aiming to curb ongoing violence and hold regional actors to recent peace agreements.
The economic penalties target high-ranking intelligence figures within the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) and the March 23 Movement (M23), both of which were previously designated as terrorist or armed threat groups by Washington.
Among those sanctioned is Gustave Kubwayo, a commander who oversees an intelligence and special operations unit for the FDLR. According to official statements, the FDLR has routinely engaged in ethnic violence against local civilians, recruited and deployed child soldiers, committed acts of sexual violence, and conducted cross-border raids that compromise the national security of neighboring Rwanda.
The penalties also target John Imani Nzenze, the chief of intelligence for M23, an armed group backed by Rwanda. U.S. officials state that M23 is responsible for widespread killings, severe human rights abuses, and targeted attacks against civilian populations throughout the eastern DRC.
The targeted sanctions freeze any U.S.-based assets held by the commanders and generally prohibit Americans from conducting business transactions with them.
The move comes as Washington attempts to pressure all regional factions to stick to the terms of recent diplomatic frameworks designed to end decades of conflict in the Great Lakes region of Africa.
“The Trump Administration is firmly committed to ensuring all parties uphold their commitments under the historic Washington Accords for Peace and Prosperity and Doha Framework and will continue using all available tools to advance lasting stability in the region,” the administration stated in its official release.
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