Greater Katanga: General Eddy Kapend mobilizes troops amid threat from Joseph Kabila’s Front for the Refoundation of the Nation

General Eddy Kapend, commander of the 22nd military region, mobilized the armed forces and police at a parade in Manika Stadium in Kolwezi amid the threat posed by Joseph Kabila’s Front for the Refoundation of the Nation (FRN). He urged troops to remain vigilant and disciplined and defend the country’s territorial integrity, and announced an awareness tour by Colonel Majita Yav Charles in Dilolo, Kalemie, Lubumbashi and Kasumbalesa. Yav described the security situation as grave while stressing that soldiers must respect civilians and the law. Announced in Goma on October 12 as the successor to the AFC, a political-military coalition linked to the M23, the FRN says it intends to oppose the Kinshasa government by all means.