M23 Rebels Seize Goma, Sparking Humanitarian Crisis in Congo

GOMA, Democratic Republic of Congo — M23 rebels, a Rwanda-backed armed group, seized control of Goma, eastern Congo’s largest city, on Jan. 27, 2025, killing several United Nations peacekeepers and forcing hundreds of thousands of civilians to flee. The attack marks a significant escalation in one of Africa’s longest-running conflicts, which has displaced 4.5 million people and created what the U.N. describes as “one of the most protracted, complex, serious humanitarian crises on Earth.”

The M23 group, one of about 100 armed factions operating in the region, has been accused of receiving military support from Rwanda, a claim Rwanda denies. Analysts say the international community’s muted response to the crisis contrasts sharply with its reaction in 2012, when M23 last captured Goma. At that time, Western nations pressured Rwanda by withholding aid and threatening sanctions. This time, however, global attention is divided by conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, and Rwanda’s growing geopolitical influence has made it harder to isolate.

“So far, there has been significantly less international pressure than there was in 2012,” said Ben Shepherd, a fellow at Chatham House’s Africa Program. “Rwanda’s role in continental peacekeeping and security operations, as well as its economic transformation, has made it more difficult for the West to take decisive action.”

Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame has positioned his country as a regional power, contributing more troops to U.N. peacekeeping missions than all but two nations. Rwanda also plays a key role in combating extremism in Mozambique and Central African Republic, where Western nations are concerned about growing Russian influence. Kagame’s efforts to modernize Rwanda’s economy and infrastructure have earned him admiration from African leaders and Western donors alike.

Despite Rwanda’s reliance on foreign aid—receiving $180 million from the U.S. in 2023 and $221 million from the World Bank—Western nations have been reluctant to cut funding. The European Union has even pledged $900 million in investments under its Global Gateway strategy. “Rwanda’s justifications and references to the genocide continue to play to the West’s perception of it,” said Daniel Van Dalen, a South Africa-based risk analyst. “There’s always been apprehension to take any decisive action against Rwanda politically or economically.”

The conflict in eastern Congo has deep roots, dating back to the 1994 Rwandan genocide, when Hutu extremists killed an estimated 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus. Kagame has justified Rwanda’s involvement in Congo as a defense of Tutsis against Hutu militias. However, a July 2024 U.N. report estimated that at least 4,000 Rwandan troops were active in Congo, with more crossing the border this week.

As M23 advances southward from Goma, the humanitarian crisis worsens. The U.N. has called for urgent international intervention, but with global powers preoccupied elsewhere, the prospects for a swift resolution remain dim. “We are waiting to see how South Africans and Angolans react,” Shepherd said. “In 2012, diplomatic pressure only worked because it came alongside African forces deployed in the U.N. intervention brigade.”