Rwanda denies plot to shoot Tshisekedi’s plane

KIGALI, Rwanda

The government of Rwanda has denied allegations by DR Congo that Rwandans arrested in Kinshasa were planning a plot to shoot down a plane carrying the Congolese president.

In a statement issued on Thursday, Rwanda described the allegations by the Congolese deputy Interior Minister, Mr Jean-Claude Molipe Mandongo, as a deliberate attempt to further inflame Congolese public opinion.

"In an ominous reference to the Genocide in Rwanda, officials at Tuesday’s press briefing accused Rwandan detainees of planning to shoot down a plane carrying the Congolese President as also alluded to further arrests of more people linked to African Health Development Organisation (AHDO) – a deliberate attempt to further inflame Congolese opinion,” a statement by the Office of the Rwanda government spokesperson reads in part.

The DR Congo accuses Rwanda of supporting M23 rebels. Rwanda too accuses DR Congo of supporting FDRL (Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda), a Rwanda rebel group. Since this year started, M23 rebels have seized several towns and border points in Eastern DR Congo.

Last week, the DR Congo government arrested Rwandan nationals Dr Juvenal Nshimiyimana and Mr Moses Mushabe in Kinshasa, the capital city of DR Congo.

The Congolese authorities accused the duo and others of buying a plot near the main airport in Kinshasa where they would allegedly target the presidential plane carrying President Felix Tshisekedi.

Rwanda’s government confirmed that two of the arrested people are their citizens working for African Health Development Organisation and have been in detention since August 30, but were paraded before the media last week to trigger ethnic violence against Kinyarwanda speakers in DR Congo.

"We urge leaders in the DR Congo to deescalate the hateful rhetoric and turn back from the path they seem to be choosing. The International community, including those who insist on coddling the DR Congo leaders, should take note and hold DR Congo officials accountable for this escalation,” the Rwanda statement reads in part.

Any attempt to assassinate the head of state is a big issue in DR Congo given the fact that they have lost one former president in such a manner.  

Last year, the East African Community Regional Forces were deployed in Goma City, DR Congo to prevent the escalation of tension.  The regional force has so far occupied Kibumba Town after M23 rebels withdrew from it.

The commander of the regional force, Maj Gen Jeff Nyagah, said on Friday that M23 rebels have agreed to withdraw from another Congolese township, Rumagambo, by Thursday and later Kishishe township where the rebels allegedly massacred more than 130 people in November last year. - Africa