A group of rebel militias in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)
says it has suspended participation in a 2008 cease-fire agreement.
The
rebel groups have released a statement citing a number of reasons for
their decision, including the government's arrest of some of their
members.
In January 2008, rebels in the eastern DRC signed a
peace accord with the government aimed at ending years of fighting in
the region.
The country's five-year civil war formally ended
in 2003. However, militias and rebel groups have remained active in
some eastern areas, especially North Kivu province.
Bloomberg
news reports that Congo's communications minister has dismissed the
militias' statement. The news agency quotes Lambert Mende as saying
the militias think they "are in charge of the peace process, but they
are not."
