Mudavadi urged to intervene after Kenyan woman Kidnapped by DRC rebel group

According to a statement from the Alliance Fleuve Congo (AFC), a political-military coalition, the rebel group kidnapped 45-year-old Frolence Wanza Munyao on August 27 in Kiseguro town.

The AFC stated that the FDLR has violated a ceasefire agreement reached between the rebel groups in Eastern DRC and has continued to threaten local agricultural activities through kidnappings and looting in the area.

"Our organisation stands shoulder to shoulder with our compatriots and reiterates its commitment to protecting them and defending their rights against these terrorist acts," said AFC.

The matter has prompted a call for immediate action by Former Machakos Senator Johnson Muthama who urged CS Mudavadi to act expeditiously to trace Munyao.

"I am asking Prime Cabinet Secretary @MusaliaMudavadi, who also serves as the Cabinet Secretary for Foreign Affairs, to urgently secure the release of Grace Wanza Munyao," Muthama wrote on X.

The Kenyan government, through Principal Secretary, State Department for Diaspora Affairs, Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs, Roseline Njogu said it was aware of the incident and was taking appropriate action. 

Fighting in Eastern Congo has escalated in over two decades as the deadly clashes have affected residents residing in provinces of South Kivu, North Kivu and Ituri.

In December 2023, severe clashes between the military and insurgents, most prominently the M23 and the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), escalated leading to displacements of millions of people.

M23 is a primarily ethnically Tutsi rebel group with ties to the Rwandan and Ugandan governments, while ADF is an ISIS-affiliated militia group.

In March 2024, the United Nations (UN) reported that the number of internally displaced people in DRC had reached 7.2 million.