International News
UN Security Council Sanctions Six DRC Armed Group Leaders
The UN Security Council has sanctioned six senior members of armed groups operating in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, where clashes with government forces have intensified in recent weeks
East African Regional Force (EACRF) Deputy Force Commander Brigadier General Emmanuel Kaputa (R) and M23 spokesman Willy Ngoma (L) shake hands in Kibumba in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, on December 23, 2022. DR Congo’s M23 rebels
Among the six added to the sanctions list on Tuesday is Willy Ngoma, a spokesman for the M23 rebels who are known for videos in which he poses with Congolese or Burundian soldiers captured during the fighting.
The sanctions consist of an asset freeze, including in the DRC, and a travel ban.
Ngoma is the fifth senior M23 member to be placed under Security Council sanctions.
The Tutsi-majority rebel group has been accused by the UN and international human rights organizations of having committed numerous massacres, among other atrocities in eastern DRC.
After several months of relative calm in the region, intense fighting resumed last month around the city of Goma, the capital of DRC’s North Kivu province.
The DRC, the United Nations and Western countries say Rwanda is supporting the rebels in a bid to control vast mineral resources, an allegation Kigali denies.
Also added to the list is Michel Rukunda, alias “Makanika,” who leads the Tutsi-majority Twirwaneho armed group that a UN group of experts says is aligned with M23.
A deserter from the Congolese army, Rukunda is accused of participating in the “recruiting or using children in armed conflict in the DRC in violation of applicable international law,” according to the UN sanctions announcement.
Rwandan Apollinaire Hakizimana, a member of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), a predominantly Hutu group created by former leaders of the Tutsi genocide in Rwanda, has also been placed on the sanctions list.
The FDLR is responsible for numerous serious crimes against civilians in Congo.
Two leaders of the ADF (Allied Democratic Forces), a Tanzanian and a Ugandan, were also sanctioned.
Their group, associated with the Islamic State group, has been responsible for the deaths of several thousand civilians in eastern DRC and Uganda over the past ten years.
William Yakutumba, commander of a coalition of armed groups generically known as “maimai”, has also been added to the list of crimes committed by his militiamen against civilians.
Christoph Vogel, a researcher at Ghent University and former UN armed groups expert, told AFP that the sanctions will likely “have little impact in a context like Congo, where most war criminals travel little and have no bank accounts abroad.”
German authorities deported at least 137 Nigerian citizens across five chartered flights between February and June 2026, according to migration monitoring reports.
Data from the DERS Team and Refugees4refugees.org shows the deportations occurred in phases, with 27 Nigerians returned in February, 37 in March through a joint European Union operation, 24 in April, 23 in May, and 26 in June.
The February operation departed from Stuttgart and landed at Lagos Cargo Airport, with Baden-Württemberg listed as a primary participant. The March operation represented the largest single return of Nigerians recorded over three years and was executed in collaboration with Spain, Austria, and Belgium.
The reports indicate a growing reliance on multi-national chartered flights by European states to repatriate undocumented or non-resident individuals to Nigeria.
The United States has condemned the killing of members of the family of Plateau-based cleric, Rev. Ezekiel Dachomo, describing the attack as horrific and urging Nigerian authorities to ensure those responsible are brought to justice.
In a statement shared on X on Thursday, the US Department of State’s Bureau of African Affairs expressed condolences to the victims’ families and called for stronger measures to prevent further attacks on vulnerable communities across Nigeria’s Middle Belt.
“The United States strongly condemns the horrific killing of members of Rev. Ezekiel Dachomo’s family in Plateau State, Nigeria. The continued violence targeting Christian communities and other vulnerable populations in Nigeria’s Middle Belt is deeply alarming,” the bureau said
The US said it had already engaged Nigerian officials on the worsening security situation, stressing that urgent action was needed to curb recurring attacks and hold perpetrators accountable.
“As I discussed last week with Nigerian officials, we must do more to prevent violent acts. The perpetrators must be held accountable, and urgent action is needed to strengthen security and protect Christians and other vulnerable communities,” the statement added.
The bureau reaffirmed Washington’s commitment to working with the Nigerian government to combat terrorism and violent extremism, stressing that Christians and other Nigerians should be able to practise their faith without fear of violence.
The statement followed the July 12 attack on Kum community in Riyom Local Government Area of Plateau State, where nine members of Rev. Dachomo’s extended family, including a two-month-old baby, were killed.
According to the cleric, the attackers, believed to be armed Fulani militias, asked for him by name before opening fire on his relatives.
Dachomo, who serves as Regional Chairman of the Church of Christ in Nations (COCIN) in Barkin Ladi Local Government Area, said his family had repeatedly been targeted because of his outspoken criticism of the violence in Plateau State.
He recalled that his grandmother and an uncle were also killed in previous attacks, adding that days after burying his relatives, he received a written death threat from the same group, warning that he would be their next target.
Saudi Arabia has updated its tourist eVisa programme for 2026, limiting eligibility in Africa to only three countries as part of its list of 66 nations whose citizens can apply through the Kingdom’s online visa platform.
The move leaves most African countries, including Nigeria, outside the simplified entry scheme.
The electronic visa allows eligible travellers to visit Saudi Arabia for tourism, leisure activities, family visits and Umrah, excluding the annual Hajj pilgrimage. Applications are completed online, eliminating the need for embassy visits and lengthy visa processing.
Saudi authorities said the eVisa forms part of ongoing efforts to expand tourism, attract international visitors and simplify travel procedures through a fully digital application system. The visa is available only to citizens of approved countries and territories listed on the Kingdom’s official tourism portal.
Below is the list of African countries eligible for Saudi Arabia’s eVisa.
1. Mauritius
2. Seychelles
3. South Africa
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