South African military forces stranded in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) were jubilant this weekend after a landmark deal with the M23 rebel movement appeared to have secured their safe passage back to South Africa.
No less than 14 South African National Defence Force (SANDF) soldiers were killed in late January when the M23 rebels, strongly suspected to be backed by Rwandan troops, stormed the eastern DRC regional city of Goma. South African forces serving as part of the Sadc Mission in the DRC (SAMIDRC) came under heavy fire and were effectively taken hostage by the rebels.
The skirmish led to a falling-out between President Cyril Ramaphosa and Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame, as well as fears the volatile central African nation could once again be plunged into civil war.
The stench of this failure will linger over any future SANDF deployments. Any future enemy on the battlefield will have taken note of what happened in the DRC
— Guy Martin, defence expert and military analyst
But this weekend — after the deal in which Sadc agreed to repair Goma’s airport, which has been severely damaged in the conflict — videos emerged of South African troops joyously hugging and exchanging handshakes with their M23 counterparts.
From the looks on the soldiers’ faces, it was clear they knew they were headed home soon.
The deal, while good news for the returning 2,000-plus soldiers, is a blow to Sadc and South African efforts to defeat M23, and means the troops will return home having failed to achieve the objective set when they were deployed in 2023.
South Africa has so far spent R2bn on the mission. A further R5bn has been allocated to it in the 2025/6 budget, but this amount will now be retained by the Treasury.
The plan to bring the remaining 2,227 South African soldiers home could take up to five months, according to an interim SANDF plan seen by the Sunday Times.
On Saturday defence expert and military analyst Guy Martin called the mission a “billion-rand failure”.
“On any measurement scale, this has been an abject failure of a mission, with none of its objectives reached. While we are speaking and our soldiers are celebrating the withdrawal, the M23 continues its advance in the DRC,” Martin said.
“The stench of this failure will linger over any future SANDF deployments. Any future enemy on the battlefield will have taken note of what happened in the DRC.”
About 800 South African soldiers have been confined to their compound in Goma since M23 took control.
Earlier this month, a Sadc extraordinary summit ended the mandate of the Sadc mission in the DRC and decided on a phased withdrawal of troops from the country.
Friday’s ceasefire with M23 now allows Sadc troops to exit the DRC safely.
The defence department declined to comment on Friday’s peace deal, saying it was a Sadc issue. Sadc did not respond to queries.
However, Zambia, which was also part of the Sadc deployment, confirmed Friday’s deal. The Zambian Army said the M23 delegation — led by its commander, Sultani Makenga — had agreed to an immediate ceasefire to create the conditions for the safe extrication of SAMIDRC troops from the region.
“This includes the unobstructed movement of SAMIDRC troops as they prepare for withdrawal, along with the secure transfer of their weapons and equipment. A crucial component of the agreement is the reopening of Goma airport. The M23 [delegation] has pledged to allow Sadc technical teams to assess the airport’s condition and undertake [the] necessary repairs to ensure [the] safe landing and take-off of aircraft,” it said.
According to South Africa’s preliminary withdrawal plan, six cargo planes, four Boeing 767 (200-seater) passenger planes, four 60-seater buses, four 10-tonne forklifts, and six low-bed trucks will be used to effect the withdrawal.
The soldiers will leave from Goma airport, now badly damaged owing to the fighting.
Meanwhile, on Friday in Goma there were cries of joy all round when SANDF commander Gen Rudzani Maphwanya visited South African soldiers to tell them about the ceasefire agreement with M23.
An SANDF source at the Goma base told the Sunday Times there were scenes of great jubilation when Maphwanya broke the news: “He visited us together with some of the M23 officers. Soldiers were falling over each other to take selfies with the visitors.”
Maphwanya still does not see the mission as a failure. “M23 lost 100 times what we lost here. If we had cover, and if our bases had been located on the high ground, this story would have ended differently.”
He said there were already signs of Goma airport being repaired. “We have seen trucks filled with sand and other building materials.”
Presidency spokesperson Vincent Magwenya yesterday welcomed “the speedy implementation” of resolutions taken by the Sadc and East African Community summit.
“We now look forward to all the parties committing themselves to more confidence-building measures that will set the stage for constructive dialogue that will deliver lasting peace in the eastern DRC and the Great Lakes Region as a whole,” he said.
South African National Defence Union head Pikkie Greeff yesterday welcomed the peace agreement with “cautious optimism”.
“The agreement also includes the return of SANDF equipment to South Africa. There remains a significant gap between the signing of an agreement and its full execution. SANDU hopes and trusts a genuine measure of goodwill exists on all sides to ensure the safe return of our SANDF members,” he said.
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