A new round of talks between the Democratic Republic of Congo and AFC/M23 rebels is set to resume this week in Switzerland after the negotiations were relocated from Doha due to the Middle East conflict, diplomatic and rebel sources said Monday.
Sources familiar with the preparations said the rebel group submitted to Qatar's State Minister for Foreign Affairs Mohammed Bin Abdel Aziz Al Khulaifi a list of 12 delegates expected to participate in the talks aimed at ending violence in eastern Congo.
The list includes Benjamin Mbonimpa, secretary general of the AFC/M23, and Rene Abandi, the chief negotiator, while other members were listed as technical experts, a rebel source told Anadolu.
The delegation also includes Claude Ibalanky Ekolomba, former ambassador-at-large of President Felix Tshisekedi, whose appearance marks his first known participation on the side of the rebels, according to the source.
Ibalanky was appointed envoy in May 2023 before launching in June the same year his political formation known as REPOP.
The government delegation is led by the president's envoy Sumbu Sita Mambu, a diplomatic source said, while a representative of the UN peacekeeping mission in Congo, MONUSCO, will participate as an observer.
On Dec. 4, 2025, Tshisekedi and Rwandan President Paul Kagame signed a "historic" peace and economic agreement aimed at ending fighting in eastern Congo.
The agreement followed a separate peace initiative brokered by US President Donald Trump in June.
However, the security situation remains fragile following intensified fighting between AFC/M23 fighters and government forces, according to local sources.
In a post on the US social media company X's platform on Monday, M23 spokesperson Lawrence Kanyuka claimed Kinshasa "once again demonstrates its clear intent to sabotage the ongoing peace process in Switzerland by launching widespread attacks against civilian populations."
Kanyuka alleged that the combined forces of the Kinshasa regime launched attacks against several densely populated areas in eastern Congo, including Chambombo, Matare, Gishihe, and Mwamiwijwi, in the territory of Kalehe.
There has been no immediate official response from Kinshasa to the claims.
The M23 has been at the center of the conflict in eastern Congo. The rebel group, allegedly supported by neighboring Rwanda according to the UN and Western countries, controls significant territory in eastern Congo, including the provincial capitals of Goma and Bukavu seized early in 2025.
