The militant group M23
In the Democratic Republic of Congo rebels held captive Colonel of the Georgian armed forces in retirement and need for a million dollars. This was reported by “Rustavi 2”.
According to the channel, 27 Jan rebels shot down two helicopters, one of which was piloted by Soso Israeli, and took him hostage.
The foreign Ministry of Georgia stated that do not yet have any information on this incident.
Earlier it was reported that two Russian pilots at the end of January died at the hands of the rebels. Two Mi-24 helicopter crashed during a patrol flyby in North Kivu due to the difficult weather conditions. At the crash site found the bodies of three people — one of the Congolese military and the two pilots — Russian citizens.
According to some, the pilots fell into the hands of rebels from the militant group M23 (the”March 23 Movement”) and was killed after being tortured. Another Russian, as it was reported, is supposedly held captive by the rebels. Near the scene of the disaster, UN peacekeepers found five wounded, three of them citizens of Russia. They are all taken to the hospital.
It was also reported that the helicopter crew consisted of citizens of Belarus and Georgia. The helicopter is under control of the Belarusian crew crashed, Georgian pilots landed on an emergency landing.
Operating in Eastern DRC group “March 23 Movement” represents the interests of ethnic minority Tutsi. It got its name from the date of the peace talks in 2009, when the Tutsi rebels were legalized and became part of the army. They soon again revolted, then the suppression of the uprising was joined by the UN troops. At the moment, with the group signed a peace agreement, but the Congolese military says some troops M23 are still operating in the border areas, where they are supported by the authorities of Rwanda and Uganda.