DAKAR: Rebels occupying Twangiza Mining’s gold concession in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have looted at least 500 kilograms of bullion since May, the company told Reuters, accusing some of its own employees of aiding the theft.
At current prices, the looted gold is worth around $70 million.
The mine is located in South Kivu province, where Rwandan-backed M23 rebels staged a lightning offensive this year that allowed them to seize more territory than ever before. They seized the mine in May.
“With the help of some employees, they transported the first batch of more than 50 kg of gold out in a very short time,” Twangiza Mining said on Monday in a written response to Reuters’ queries about losses since M23 seized the mine.
“Since the occupation, they have obtained at least 500kg of gold and secretly transported it through underground channels,” the company said.
M23 did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Twangiza Mining, which is headquartered in Congo and describes itself as a Chinese firm, said it lost over 100 kg of gold a month since the takeover, in addition to $5 million worth of equipment and materials.
The company is preparing to file a formal complaint with international arbitration and Congolese authorities, and has declared force majeure, it said.
It accused the rebels of expelling residents, demolishing churches and using Rwandan technicians to extract geological data to resume and expand mining.
“There are more than 150 workers left on site. We cannot get in touch with them,” the company said.
The Rwandan government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
A drone strike on October 15 destroyed power generation infrastructure at the mine. It is not clear who was responsible for the drone strike.
Fighting in eastern Congo has killed thousands of people and displaced hundreds of thousands this year.
Armed groups have seized several mining sites in the mineral-rich eastern Congo, according to UN investigators.
A UN Security Council briefing last year said M23 rebels were earning around $300,000 monthly from mineral taxes in the coltan-rich Rubaya region.
US President Donald Trump brokered a peace deal between Congo and Rwanda in June as part of an effort to stabilize eastern Congo and bring in Western mining investments.
Rwanda has consistently denied backing M23 rebels, despite repeated allegations from UN experts and regional governments. Qatar has been hosting direct talks between Congo and M23.
The two sides missed an August deadline for a peace deal as part of that process but on October 14, they agreed to a monitoring mechanism for an eventual ceasefire.
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M23 rebels loot $70m worth of gold from Congo mine since May, company says
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M23 rebels loot $70m worth of gold from Congo mine since May, company says
- “With the help of some employees, they transported the first batch of more than 50 kg of gold out in a very short time,” Twangiza Mining said
- It lost over 100 kg of gold a month since the takeover, in addition to $5 million worth of equipment and materials
French first lady Brigitte Macron visits an old friend in China: A giant panda called Yuan Meng
CHENGDU: French first lady Brigitte Macron caught up with an old friend — a giant panda born in France — at the tail end Friday of a visit to China with President Emmanuel Macron.
At a panda reserve in southwest China that Yuan Meng now calls home, the first lady marveled at how big he has grown. She helped chose his name — which means “accomplishment of a dream” — when he was born in a French zoo in 2017.
“When they’re born, they’re like this,” she said, holding up two fingers a short distance apart. Meanwhile, the chunky male roamed in his enclosure, feasting on bamboo and ignoring bystanders who cried out his name, hoping to elicit a reaction.
“They have a very independent character,” she said. “They do only what they want.”
For decades, China has deployed what’s often called “panda diplomacy” to smooth and promote relations with other countries, gifting the animals to friendly nations and lending pandas to zoos overseas on commercial terms.
Emmanuel Macron’s state visit this week to China, his fourth as president, included meetings with Chinese leader Xi Jinping and other officials, discussing Russia’s war in Ukraine, trade ties and other issues.
The China Wildlife Conservation Association said during the visit that it signed a letter of intent to send two of the animals to the Beauval Zoo south of Paris in 2027 under what would be a new 10-year round of panda cooperation with France.
The French zoo sent two 17-year-old pandas — Huan Huan, a female, and her partner Yuan Zi — back to China last month after 13 years on loan in France.
Yuan Meng was their cub, conceived using artificial insemination.
Despite being made in France, he officially belonged to the Chinese government. Yuan Meng bid ‘’adieu’’ to France in 2023, sent off to a new life in the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in southwest China where Brigitte Macron, considered to be his “godmother,” dropped in to see him.
Huan Huan and Yuan Zi also produced female twins in France in 2021.
Huanlili and Yuandudu are also expected to leave the Beauval Zoo for China in the future. The China Wildlife Conservation Association has previously said that it expects them to remain at the French zoo until January 2027.
At a panda reserve in southwest China that Yuan Meng now calls home, the first lady marveled at how big he has grown. She helped chose his name — which means “accomplishment of a dream” — when he was born in a French zoo in 2017.
“When they’re born, they’re like this,” she said, holding up two fingers a short distance apart. Meanwhile, the chunky male roamed in his enclosure, feasting on bamboo and ignoring bystanders who cried out his name, hoping to elicit a reaction.
“They have a very independent character,” she said. “They do only what they want.”
For decades, China has deployed what’s often called “panda diplomacy” to smooth and promote relations with other countries, gifting the animals to friendly nations and lending pandas to zoos overseas on commercial terms.
Emmanuel Macron’s state visit this week to China, his fourth as president, included meetings with Chinese leader Xi Jinping and other officials, discussing Russia’s war in Ukraine, trade ties and other issues.
The China Wildlife Conservation Association said during the visit that it signed a letter of intent to send two of the animals to the Beauval Zoo south of Paris in 2027 under what would be a new 10-year round of panda cooperation with France.
The French zoo sent two 17-year-old pandas — Huan Huan, a female, and her partner Yuan Zi — back to China last month after 13 years on loan in France.
Yuan Meng was their cub, conceived using artificial insemination.
Despite being made in France, he officially belonged to the Chinese government. Yuan Meng bid ‘’adieu’’ to France in 2023, sent off to a new life in the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in southwest China where Brigitte Macron, considered to be his “godmother,” dropped in to see him.
Huan Huan and Yuan Zi also produced female twins in France in 2021.
Huanlili and Yuandudu are also expected to leave the Beauval Zoo for China in the future. The China Wildlife Conservation Association has previously said that it expects them to remain at the French zoo until January 2027.
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