Former Congolese president Joseph Kabila has taken a dramatic step into the rebellion against his successor, Félix Tshisekedi, by assuming leadership of a new political-military alliance incorporating Rwanda-backed M23 insurgents. The move comes a year after a military court sentenced him to death in absentia over alleged links to the rebellion.
The announcement, made on Monday, October 12, in Goma, eastern DRC, marks a significant escalation in Kabila’s confrontation with the government of President Félix Tshisekedi, his successor.
Kabila will head the Front for the Refoundation of the Nation (FRN), a new politico-military organisation formed to unite opposition forces and challenge the government in Kinshasa. Its leadership includes prominent figures associated with the Congo River Alliance (AFC), the political movement previously linked to M23.
The alliance signals Kabila’s shift from a former head of state who had denied supporting the insurgency to an openly declared leader of a movement that says it is prepared to use force to achieve its objectives.
At the launch in Goma, a city under M23 control since January 2025, the movement said it would pool its forces, resources and capabilities to end what it described as tyranny.
Claude Ibalanky, an adviser to the new organisation, said its mission was to unite and coordinate resistance forces and establish a new political direction for the country.
The declaration that the movement could pursue its objectives through force raises concerns about the future of peace negotiations and the possibility of renewed fighting in a region already devastated by decades of conflict.
A former president now leading an armed challenge
Kabila’s new role represents a remarkable turn in the political career of a man who governed the vast central African country from 2001 to 2019.
For years, Kabila remained an influential figure in Congolese politics after leaving office, retaining political allies and a substantial parliamentary presence through his political network.
However, his relationship with Tshisekedi deteriorated after the two leaders initially formed a governing coalition following the 2018 elections.
The partnership eventually collapsed in 2020, as Tshisekedi moved to dismantle Kabila’s influence within government institutions. By 2021, the president had removed the remaining prominent allies of his predecessor from key government positions.
Kabila subsequently withdrew from the public spotlight and went into self-imposed exile abroad in 2023, although he later returned to eastern Congo, where M23 had expanded its territorial control.
The Congolese government has accused him of helping initiate the AFC, the political wing associated with M23. Kabila has denied the allegations, describing the legal proceedings against him as politically motivated.
His appointment to lead the FRN now places him directly at the head of an organisation incorporating leaders of the rebellion that Kinshasa has been fighting.
The development could complicate the government’s efforts to portray the insurgency as a foreign-backed security threat, while giving the new alliance a prominent former national leader to present its political claims.
However, Kabila’s involvement does not resolve questions about the movement’s military command, its relationship with Rwanda or the extent to which its political objectives are shared by all the armed factions involved.
Death sentence hangs over Kabila
Kabila’s latest political move comes against the backdrop of a dramatic legal confrontation with the state.
In September 2025, a Congolese military court sentenced him to death in absentia after convicting him on charges that included treason, war crimes and crimes against humanity, as well as collaboration with the AFC/M23 movement.
The verdict followed allegations by the authorities that he had supported the insurgency seeking to undermine the government.
Kabila denied the accusations and condemned the proceedings as a political trial. His absence from the proceedings meant he was tried without being physically present in court.
The sentence has placed the former president in an extraordinary position: a man who once commanded the national armed forces and represented the state is now leading an alliance that includes armed opponents of the government.
His new position is likely to deepen the confrontation between him and Tshisekedi, while raising questions about whether the government will pursue additional political, diplomatic or military measures in response.
The United States also imposed sanctions on Kabila in 2026 over his alleged role in supporting rebel groups.
The sanctions and the Congolese court verdict underline the international and domestic pressure surrounding the former president. They do not, however, mean that the allegations against him have been accepted by every party or that his own denial has been withdrawn.
Who are the men joining Kabila?
The FRN brings together political and military figures associated with the AFC/M23 movement.
Corneille Nangaa, the former head of the Congo River Alliance, is among those named to senior leadership positions. Bertrand Bisimwa, a leading figure within M23, is also part of the new structure.
Sultani Makenga, the movement’s military commander, has been named to a senior military position within the alliance.
The inclusion of these figures gives the FRN access to an established political network and armed organisation that has captured substantial territory in North Kivu and South Kivu.
The new organisation is presented as a broader political-military front rather than simply a continuation of an individual rebel group.
Its leaders say they intend to coordinate resistance forces and establish an alternative to the current administration. The declaration also raises the prospect of force being used against the government.
The extent to which the new structure changes the existing chain of command remains uncertain. A new name and political leadership arrangement do not necessarily mean that the movement’s military operations, territorial ambitions or external relationships have fundamentally changed.
Nevertheless, Kabila’s formal elevation gives the alliance a new political dimension, with the former president now publicly associated with the leadership of the anti-government movement.
Rwanda’s role and the struggle in eastern Congo
The development comes amid continuing international concern over Rwanda’s alleged support for M23. The DRC government, the United States and United Nations experts have accused Rwanda of backing the insurgency. Kigali has repeatedly denied supporting the rebels.
The conflict has its roots in regional rivalries, disputes over land and citizenship, competition over resources, and the activities of numerous armed groups operating across eastern Congo.
M23 emerged as a significant armed challenge in 2012 and re-emerged in 2021, subsequently capturing major towns and strategic areas.
Its advances have displaced civilians, disrupted trade and intensified a humanitarian crisis in the mineral-rich region bordering Rwanda.
The DRC has repeatedly sought international intervention to end the conflict, while negotiations have involved regional governments and external mediators.
A December agreement between Kinshasa and Kigali, reached under United States auspices, has yet to produce a lasting end to the fighting on the ground.
A separate Qatar-mediated process involving Kinshasa and M23 also produced a ceasefire commitment in July 2025, but the truce has not been consistently respected.
Kabila’s new alliance introduces another complication into these efforts. A movement headed by a former president, rather than only established rebel commanders, could broaden the conflict’s political stakes and make negotiations more complicated.
It also raises the question of whether Kabila intends to use the new platform primarily to challenge Tshisekedi politically, pursue a military campaign or combine both approaches.
The movement’s declaration that it may use force suggests that the confrontation will not be confined to conventional party politics.
Tshisekedi faces a 2028 succession question
The new alliance is emerging at a sensitive moment for Congolese politics. Tshisekedi, who succeeded Kabila in January 2019, is approaching the end of his second five-year term in 2028. The Congolese Constitution limits presidents to two five-year terms.
However, debate has intensified over proposals to amend the Constitution, with members of the presidential majority preparing public opinion for possible changes.
Opponents of constitutional revision fear it could reopen the question of presidential term limits, while supporters argue that constitutional reform should be considered through the country’s political institutions.
The prospect of changes has added to tensions between the government and its critics.
Kabila’s return to the political arena through an organisation incorporating armed groups could give the confrontation a new and more dangerous dimension. Unlike ordinary opposition parties, the FRN includes actors with an established military presence in the east.
The government has not immediately responded to the alliance’s announcement. The central question is whether Kabila’s involvement will produce a new political opening or further entrench the military confrontation between the government and its opponents.
From a rebel family to a national presidency
Kabila’s political history is closely connected to the armed struggles that shaped modern Congo. Born on June 4, 1971, he is the son of Laurent-Désiré Kabila, the rebel leader who overthrew long-time ruler Mobutu Sese Seko in 1997 and became president.
Joseph Kabila received education and military training in Tanzania and Uganda, including studies at Makerere University before the First Congo War interrupted his education. He later received further military training in China.
He participated in the campaign that brought his father to power and subsequently served in the Congolese armed forces.
In January 2001, Laurent-Désiré Kabila was assassinated by a bodyguard. Joseph succeeded him ten days later, taking office at the age of 29 during the Second Congo War.
His presidency became associated with the peace process that helped bring the war to an end and with the organisation of the country’s first multiparty elections in decades.
He won the 2006 presidential election and was re-elected in 2011, although the latter vote was marred by allegations of fraud and irregularities.
His administration also promoted foreign investment in the mining industry and infrastructure development. However, it faced persistent criticism over corruption, unequal economic growth, restrictions on political freedoms and human rights violations.
Kabila eventually agreed to leave office following the December 2018 election. Tshisekedi succeeded him in what became the country’s first peaceful transfer of power between elected presidents.
Yet the political transition did not end the rivalry between the two men. Kabila’s political network initially retained significant influence in parliament and government, but Tshisekedi gradually dismantled their governing partnership.
The former president’s new alliance with M23 now represents the most consequential turn in that rivalry.
A new chapter in Congo’s crisis
Kabila’s emergence as leader of the FRN raises the prospect of a former head of state becoming a central figure in an armed campaign against the government he once led.
The development could reshape opposition politics, complicate international mediation and intensify uncertainty over the country’s political future.
It also presents difficult questions for the international community, which has been attempting to secure a ceasefire and prevent the conflict from spreading further across the Great Lakes region.
For civilians in eastern Congo, the immediate concern remains whether the new political alignment will bring further fighting, displacement and disruption to already fragile communities.
For Kinshasa, the challenge is no longer limited to confronting M23 commanders. It now includes a former president whose national political experience and connections could give the insurgency a different profile.
Whether Kabila’s leadership can unify the various factions, or whether internal disagreements will weaken the new front, remains to be seen.
What is clear is that the announcement in Goma marks a major change in his public role: from former president and political rival to the declared leader of a new political-military alliance that includes M23 rebels fighting the Congolese government.
Author Profile
- Charles Gazza Kodili is a seasoned journalist with over 20 years of experience in the media industry. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Mass Communication. He’s currently the Chief Editor at the Investigator.
Charles can also be reached via; Tel: +256 774 108978
Email: [email protected]
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