The M23 rebels have agreed to continue to leave in an orderly manner from the area they captured in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, former Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta said on Thursday.
Kenyatta met M23 leaders in his capacity as a mediator in the conflict on behalf of the seven-nation East African community, according to a statement from his office.
The Tutsi-led M23 group has captured many areas in North Kivu province in recent months and is moving towards its capital, Goma.
But due to strong international pressure, it promised to leave there and last Friday and returned an important Congolese army base 40 kilometers north of Goma.
In a show of goodwill and willingness to work to resolve the situation in North Kivu, M23 leaders agreed to proceed with the withdrawal process and respect the ceasefire," Kenyatta said in the statement after the meeting in the Kenyan coastal city of Mombasa.
They further agreed to continue to respect and cooperate with the East African Regional Army which has now begun to control the areas left by M23," he added.
M23, whose name is "The March 23 Movement", took up arms again to fight the government at the end of 2021, accusing it Kinshasa for failing to honor promises to reintegrate the rebels into the army.
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