Cablegate: Goma Situation Report for December 14, 2007

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OO RUEHBZ RUEHDU RUEHGI RUEHJO RUEHMR RUEHRN
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O 170818Z DEC 07
FM AMEMBASSY KINSHASA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 7239
INFO RUEHXR/RWANDA COLLECTIVE
RUCNSAD/SOUTHERN AF DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY
RHMFISS/HQ USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE
RUFOADA/JAC MOLESWORTH RAF MOLESWORTH UK
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC

UNCLAS KINSHASA 001369

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E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV KDEM PHUM MOPS PREL PREF KPKO CG
SUBJECT: Goma Situation Report for December 14, 2007

SENSTIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED - PROTECT ACCORDINGLY

Note: The following report was provided by Embassy Kinshasa's
political officer in Goma. End note.

Goma Report December 14, 2007

1. (SBU) Summary: Fallout from the army's reversal continues
apace. FARDC held its position on the Rutshuru axis December 13 but
the region's deputy commander was reportedly shot in the shoulder by
his own men. General Narayan estimates 5,000 deserters, of whom
some are in Goma where they could cause trouble. First estimates of
numbers of IDP's appear exaggerated. End Summary.

2. (SBU) MONUC North Kivu Brigade Commander General Narayan briefed
Special Envoy Tim Shortley December 14 before he departed by MONUC
convoy to Kirolirwe (helicopter connection countermanded by rain).
Narayan recounted the history of the general collapse of the FARDC
offensive December 10-11. He estimated that the number of FARDC
deserters (i.e., fleeing soldiers) was 5,000. He had reports
(denied by FARDC 8th region commander Mayala) that Mayala's deputy
Colonel Delphin had been shot in the shoulder December 13 and eight
of his bodyguards killed in an altercation with his own soldiers at
Sake. At Katale (road to Masisi), MONUC had urged the FARDC
commander there to return to Katale after fleeing in panic to
Masisi, so far without success. Narayan said that there was heavy
shelling at Rugari December 13, but the local MONUC commander
persuaded the FARDC battalion commander to hold his ground, and the
threat at Rugari appeared to have subsided December 14. Narayan
continued to emphasize the leadership deficit in the FARDC,
lamenting that MONUC had had to save Sake now three times, November
2006, August 2007, and now.

3. (SBU) MONUC political briefer told Goma poloff and USAIDoff that
400 fleeing, armed FARDC soldiers were thought to be in the "Mount
Goma" section of Goma. MONUC would be monitoring the area
carefully. FARDC had sent a shipment of ammunition to Nyanzale, but
MONUC had no information to suggest FARDC was planning any
(necessarily ill-advised) military offensive in that quarter. MONUC
learned that French television journalists had participated in
unearthing mass graves discovered some months ago north of
Rutshuru.

4. (SBU) OCHA reports that new IDP's moving into the IDP camps
between Sake and Goma number approximately 6,000, a figure far less
than original estimates ranging from 20,000 to 60,000. The number
of IDP's coming from Rugari to Kibumba (on the Congo-Nile divide on
the Rutshuru axis) in the past two days may have reached a similar
magnitude.

Garvelink

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