Congolese rebel leader arrested

Congolese rebel leader Laurent Nkunda has been arrested after fleeing into neighbouring Rwanda. Military commanders say the renegade Tutsi general was detained in a joint operation by Rwandan and Congolese forces.

Last year, Nkunda led his fighters in a major anti-government offensive in North Kivu province which displaced more than a quarter of a million civilians.

The Democratic Republic of Congo’s government is now set to ask for his extradition.

The Congolese-Rwandan military operation marks unprecedented cooperation after years of mutual suspicion and hostility between the two nations.

Under pressure from the international community, they have joined forces ostensibly to eradicate a Rwandan Hutu militia that has been at the heart of regional unrest for more than a decade.

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