Kenya's parliament has approved the deployment of more than 900 troops to the conflict-wracked east of the Democratic Republic of Congo in a mission that will cost taxpayers $36.5 million for an initial six months.

The National Assembly on Wednesday approved the despatch of just over 900 Kenya Defence Force personnel to the DRC as part of a joint regional operation against a resurgent rebel offensive.

The mineral-rich DRC is struggling to contain dozens of armed militias including the M23 rebel group whose recent advances in the country's east have revived old animosities and exacerbated regional tensions.

Kenyan President William Ruto announced on November 2 that the country would be sending in troops, following an agreement by the East African Community (EAC) regional bloc in April to establish a joint force to help restore security in the DRC.

Kenya will command the mission, which will also include soldiers from Burundi, South Sudan and Uganda.

"Our mission... is going to enforce peace, stabilisation," said MP Nelson Koech, who heads parliament's defence, intelligence and foreign relations committee.

"We must secure our region," he told parliament on Wednesday, adding that the mission would cost 4.4 billion shillings ($36.5 million) for the first six months.

"If it escalates and there is a spillover of our time there, it will go up to 5.5 billion to six billion (shillings)" he said.

But he said talks were under way with organisations such as the United Nations to secure international financing for the EAC force.

Some MPs questioned footing the bill for the deployment at a time when Kenyans are suffering deep economic hardship including a cost-of-living crisis and drought.

A Rwandan contingent will be deployed along the border, after Kinshasa objected to Kigali's participation in any operations within the DRC.

The DRC accuses Rwanda of backing the M23, claims denied by Kigali.

A UN force, known by its French acronym MONUSCO, is already operating in the DRC.

A mostly Congolese Tutsi group, the M23 first leapt to prominence in 2012 -- briefly capturing the main city in eastern DRC, Goma, before being driven out.

After lying dormant for years, it took up arms again in late 2021 claiming the DRC had failed to honour a pledge to integrate its members into the army, among other grievances.

The M23 has won a string of victories against the DRC's army in North Kivu province in recent weeks, dramatically increasing the territory under its control.

Angolan court jails ex-army officers, bankers for fraud
Luanda (AFP) Nov 10, 2022 - A court in Angola on Thursday jailed dozens of former soldiers belonging to the presidential guard for up to 14 years for fraud and embezzlement in a high-profile mass corruption trial.

Forty-nine people including officers employed during the era of former president Jose Eduardo dos Santos and linked to the presidential security service, as well as bank workers, went on trial in June.

They faced different charges, including embezzlement, fraud and abuse of power.

"It was proven that the state was seriously damaged because of... the continued illegal activities, so this court found them guilty," said judge Andrade da Silva.

A total of 202 witnesses testified against the group.

In one of the examples of malfeasance cited by the court during a six-hour marathon ruling, hundreds of dead soldiers in the presidential guard unit remained on the payroll between 2008 and 2018.

Salaries paid to the ghost military workers prejudiced the government of some 38 billion kwanzas ($77 million), the court found.

Some of the army officers were accused of having a hand in stashes of foreign and local currency found in boxes and suitcases by Angolan prosecutors earlier last year.

Investigators found four million US dollars and 391,000 euros in cash at two Luanda properties owned by one army major Pedro Lussaty. He was also found in possession of 30 watches worth $600,000, the judge said.

The sheer number of defendants and witnesses meant standard courts were too small and the trial was moved to Talatona Convention Centre, located about 30 kilometres (19 miles) south of the capital Luanda.

There were more than 30 lawyers defending the accused, who indicated that they will appeal the convictions and sentences.

The epicentre of the crimes was the office of the secretary-general in the presidency.

President Joao Lourenco, a former general, came to power in 2017 promising to tackle rampant corruption that took root under his predecessor Dos Santos.

He was re-elected after a narrow win in an August vote that was disputed by the main opposition party UNITA.

Dos Santos -- who died in July in Barcelona, weeks after suffering cardiorespiratory arrest -- was accused of appointing family and friends to key positions during his 38-year rule, leaving the southwest African country with a legacy of poverty and nepotism.

When the trial opened in June, an opposition politician and lawyer Helder Chihuto remarked that the people on trial were the "small fish".

Related Links
Africa News - Resources, Health, Food

Tweet

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only

UN accuses Mali army and jihadists of massacres
Niamey (AFP) Nov 10, 2022
Mali's army and jihadist groups have carried out massacres and hundreds of human rights violations, the UN said in a report that details previously undocumented abuses against civilians. The UN Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) report, seen by AFP on Thursday, catalogues 375 rights violations in the country between July and September, attributing 163 to jihadist groups and 162 to the Malian army. It added 33 were carried out by militias, and 17 by armed groups which signed a 2015 peace agreement in nort ... read more