Police fired tear gas to disperse demonstrators in Congo's eastern city of Goma on Wednesday who were calling on authorities to enforce an agreed withdrawal of M23 rebels from occupied territory in the region.
Regional leaders brokered a ceasefire in November under which the Tutsi-led group, which launched a fresh offensive last year, was meant to pull out of recently captured positions. The deadline for this was Jan. 15, according to Congo's presidency.and occupying territory elsewhere to compensate for withdrawals that critics consider to be mainly ceremonial. President Felix Tshisekedi made similar accusations on Tuesday.
"We are asking EAC forces to leave the city and wage offensives where the M23 is," said protester Gloire Bagaya, 26.Police fired tear gas at the demonstrators and arrested about a dozen people, including three journalists, according to a Reuters reporter on the scene. The M23's latest offensive has displaced at least 450,000 people and sparked a diplomatic crisis between Congo and neighbouring Rwanda.
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