US senator seeks African weaponized party for terrorist designation

(MENAFN) Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, is advocating for the US to classify the M23 rebel group in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo) and Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) as foreign terrorist organizations. The initiative is part of proposed amendments to the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act, aiming to reshape Washington’s policy toward Africa.

Under the proposal, the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Treasury Secretary and Attorney General, must evaluate whether M23 and RSF meet the legal criteria for terrorist designation. Risch has stipulated that a classified report on the assessment be submitted to Congress within 90 days of the act’s enactment.

M23 has intensified its operations in DR Congo’s mineral-rich eastern regions, capturing key towns in North Kivu and facing accusations of mass killings, sexual violence, and displacing hundreds of thousands, with alleged support from Rwanda, which Kigali denies. Meanwhile, Sudan’s RSF has been engaged in a violent civil war with the Sudanese Armed Forces since April 2023, marked by large-scale atrocities and ethnic cleansing. The group’s announcement of a parallel government last month has drawn criticism from the African Union and international organizations for potentially worsening Sudan’s ongoing crisis.

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