The South African National Defence Force (SANDF) is making a desperate retreat from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) after suffering devastating losses in its failed intervention against M23. Over 100 SANDF soldiers have been killed, and those remaining are now stranded without medical and food supplies, effectively trapped under M23 control.
Reports indicate that among the captured troops is a female soldier who is pregnant, highlighting the dire conditions within the retreating force. The withdrawal comes amid mounting pressure on South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, whose government is facing backlash over the costly and disastrous mission.
However, the withdrawal has exposed an even darker reality—evidence has surfaced that Ramaphosa and DRC President Félix Tshisekedi had secretly planned an attack on Rwanda. A massive stockpile of weapons, including ballistic missiles intended to strike Rwanda, was uncovered at Goma Airport following M23’s rapid takeover of the city. The discovery confirms that the intervention was not just about fighting M23 but was part of a broader plot to overthrow Rwandan President Paul Kagame.
Ramaphosa and Tshisekedi’s mission in eastern DRC was never about peacekeeping. Their true objective was to exterminate indigenous Tutsi communities in the region, clearing the way for control over the area’s vast mineral resources. The coalition of FARDC, FDLR genocidal militia, Wazalendo ethnic fighters, Burundian troops, and mercenaries was assembled to execute this plan, with South Africa playing a crucial role in providing military support.
Hundreds of SANDF troops now have no choice but to return home, as their deployment has been rendered futile. Initially reluctant to withdraw through Rwanda due to political tensions, the South African government has now had to rely on Kigali’s goodwill to facilitate the safe passage of its defeated troops.
Despite South Africa’s past attempts to tarnish Rwanda’s image, Kigali has once again demonstrated its diplomatic maturity by allowing the stranded soldiers to fly back home through its territory. This marks the final chapter of South Africa’s ill-fated intervention in the DRC—a mission that has not only failed but has also exposed Pretoria’s deeper involvement in regional destabilization and its complicity in a plot that has now completely unraveled.