Dr. Kongo, the M23 government and the ceasefire after the Qatar talks

The Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Rwandan -backed M23 rebels agreed to stop the fighting in the east of the country until the peace talks by Qatar reached their “conclusion”.

It is the most recent truce since the rebels rose an attack in the eastern Congo, where the authorities say 7,000 people have been killed since January.

Both sides announced on Wednesday jointly to work for peace more than a week after the talks, which they described as “frank and constructive.”

Last month, Congolese President Felix Czechid and his Rwandan counterpart Paul Kagame also They reaffirm their “unconditional” ceasefire at a sudden meeting in Doha.

The struggle that has lasted for decades has intensified since January when the M23 has organized an unprecedented attack, as it seized Juma and Bocavo – the two largest cities in the eastern Congo – which raised fears of a wider regional war.

Dr. Congo accuses Rwanda of arming M23 and sending forces to support the rebels in the conflict. Despite the assurances of both the United Nations and the United States, Rwanda denied the support of M23.

Rwanda said that its forces act in self -defense against the Congolese army and the Allied militias, some of which accuse the 1994 genocide.

Dr. Congo also accuses Rwanda of illegally exploiting its mineral deposits in the east of the country, which Rwanda denies.

In a joint statement issued by the M23 government and the Congolese government on Wednesday, each side pledged to give peace talks an opportunity.

“Through the mutual agreement, both parties restore an obligation to immediately stop in hostilities, a factional rejection of any hate speech, intimidation, and invite all local communities to support these obligations,” they said in a statement. Posted on X by M23 spokesman Lawrence Canuka.

They said that the ceasefire would apply “throughout the time of the conversations until their end.”

Sources in the Qatar Reuters talks told Reuters that the results of the meetings were almost deviated from “technical” issues.

It is not clear for the truce that the truce will be held as many ceasefires have been agreed since 2021, before it collapsed later.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Belgium is Maxime Prevot The truce is called a “decisive step towards ending violence”.

Qatar was mediating between the two parties after the rebels refused to attend peace talks in Angola last month.

The Congolese government has long refused direct talks with the M23, describing it as a “terrorist” group.