The bodies of South African National Defence Force (SANDF) soldiers who were killed in fierce gun battles with the M23 rebels in the Democratic Republic of Congo are finally heading home after authorities fought a tough battle to repatriate them after the insurgents refused to hand them over and started “playing some dirty tricks”.
Sunday World can reveal that the South African authorities asked the United Nations (UN) to intervene after M23 rebels captured the second city and allegedly became cocky and hostile towards South African soldiers.
“They tried to hold the bodies of our 14 soldiers ‘hostage’ after they successfully captured Goma and seized control of Nyabibwe, a mining town in Kivu province,” our mole in the defence force said.
The chief of defence, Gen Rudzani Maphwanya, told a special parliamentary portfolio committee on Tuesday, sitting to discuss the Congo crisis, that the bodies were coming back to South Africa on Wednesday. But bodies only left Congo on Friday after M23 rebels made some demands.
“M23 was holding the bodies hostage (sic), telling our soldiers to pack and go if they want to see the repatriation happening,” a senior government official with intimate knowledge of the alleged drama said.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the M23 were nice and friendly after the ceasefire but became cocky after they took over Nyibibwe on Wednesday.
“They were now in charge and calling the shots. They became hostile and accused us of leaking the information to the press that hundreds of their soldiers were killed during the violent gunfight in Sake,” he explained.
He added that M23 also started treating South African soldiers like prisoners.
“They have ordered our soldiers not to carry any weapons and are escorting them everywhere they are going. It is so ridiculous,” he added.
One of the soldiers, who is in the base in Goma, managed to send a panic message to his seniors claiming that they were being held hostage by M23 and they didn’t have food and water.
M23 had a rally at a stadium in Goma on Thursday, where its political leader, Corneille Nangaa, announced they had “liberated” the city.
The Associated Press reported this week that Goma is the mining hub in the region “containing trillions of dollars in mineral wealth that remains largely untapped”.
Defence spokesperson Siphiwe Dlamini yesterday denied the hostage allegations but confirmed that M23 rebels were playing some dirty tricks.
“One moment they are friendly to our soldiers, and the next moment they are hostile to them without any explanation,” he said.
Dlamini confirmed that the UN was allowed to deliver food and water to South African soldiers.
The defence department issued a press statement late on Friday night confirming that they had encountered some delays in moving the bodies of the 14 fallen soldiers from Congo.
The statement also confirmed that the bodies were now on the move.
“The movement is conducted by the United Nations,” the statement reads.
The bodies were taken to Entebbe Airport in Uganda, where they would be prepared for transportation by air to South Africa, Malawi and Tanzania.
Last week, Sunday World reported that one Tanzanian soldier and two Malawians, who were part of the peacekeeping force, were killed during the gunfight with the M23 rebels in Sake, about 27km from Goma, while South Africa lost nine troops in that battle two weeks ago.
By yesterday, it wasn’t yet clear when exactly the bodies were expected to be back home.
Sunday World has it on good authority that as soon as their bodies land, they will be taken to 1 Military Hospital in Pretoria, where DNA tests will be conducted before they are released to their respective families for burial.
President Cyril Ramaphosa on Friday said he had directed the national flag to be flown at half-mast throughout the country for seven days as the country entered a mourning period for the fallen soldiers.
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