The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has vowed to retaliate against Rwanda which shot down its fighter jet. The DRC government said this in an official statement issued yesterday 24th January 2023.
“The Government of DRC strongly condemns and denounces the attack on its fighter jet by the Rwandan army in Congolese airspace and does not intend to let go,” said the DRC government.
Rwanda’s government said on Tuesday that a fighter jet from DRC had violated its airspace, prompting its defence force to fire in response. The Congolese government however disputed this claim adding that “Rwandan fire was directed at the Congolese fighter jet.”
The DRC government has vowed to retaliate to what it termed as ‘kigali’s Aggression’ after the Rwandan army shot DRC’s Sukhoi – 25 in Goma, North Kivu.
Tensions have continued to rise between the two countries with each country accusing the other of several actions of aggression. The Rwandan government yesterday evening said that DRC’s war plane had violated Rwandan airspace for the third time arguing that defensive measures had to be taken.
In November last year, in an unprecedented incident, a fighter jet belonging to the DRC army mistakenly landed at an airport in neighboring Rwanda which sparked off a new phase of tension between the two countries.
According to reports, the fighter jet, a Sukhoi-25 is said to have violated Rwandan airspace when it landed at Rubavu Airport in Rwanda at 11:20am before flying away shortly.
Tensions between the two nations date back to the 1994 genocide in Rwanda when an estimated one million Tutsis and moderate Hutus were killed. Many of the perpetrators of the violence fled to the DRC, at the time called Zaire. The post-genocide Rwandan government launched military operations in a bid to force the perpetrators back home to face justice.
Rwanda believes the DRC continues to provide refuge for those behind the 1994 attack.