The U.S. hit two armed group commanders with sanctions Tuesday over escalating violence in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, despite ongoing American mediation efforts.
The Treasury Department targeted John Imani Nzenze, M23’s intelligence chief, and Gustave Kubwayo, an FDLR commander who leads its intelligence and special operations unit. M23 is a Tutsi-led rebel group that the UN says gets backing from Rwanda — something Kigali denies. The FDLR is a Hutu militia with roots in Rwanda’s 1994 genocide. The two groups are fighting on opposite sides in Congo’s mineral-rich east.
“President Trump has been clear that there is an urgent need to resolve the horrific conflict in eastern DRC, and the U.S. is committed to peace and prosperity in the region,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement. He added that “persistent violence by armed groups is exacerbating an already dire humanitarian crisis and presents a threat to U.S. interests.”
The move comes months after Rwanda and Congo signed a deal in Washington in December as part of Trump’s push for peace and Western investment. Days later, M23 briefly seized the eastern city of Uvira near Burundi in the war’s biggest flare-up since then, before withdrawing under U.S. pressure.
Nzenze, Rwanda’s government, and Congo officials didn’t immediately comment.
