By Henry D Gombya

British Africa Minister Henry Bellingham is concerned about foreign government's support for the DRC's M23 group.

The United Kingdom is warning foreign governments against providing support for a group of several hundred soldiers from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) that have mutinied against the government of DRC President Joseph Kabila.

A statement made by the office of Britain’s Minister for Africa Henry Bellingham said the instability currently in eastern DRC ‘is in no-one’s interest’. Bellingham said the British government was concerned about foreign support for a newly formed DRC group calling itself the M23. He said allegations of foreign support for the M23 group had already worsened the humanitarian situation in the DRC and that it had led to thousands of Congolese fleeing their homes.

Mr Bellingham said: “It is important that the Congolese government with support from MONUSCO (the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the DR Congo) tackles all armed groups in the region, including the FDLR (the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda) and M23.” He warned: “No foreign government should provide support to the M23 or any other armed group. The UK and its partners will continue to monitor the situation closely.”