GOMA, Congo (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump claims that the war in eastern Congo is among the ones he has stopped, after brokering a peace deal between Congo and Rwanda in June. But residents, conflict researchers and others say that’s not true.
Trump on Monday repeated claims that he ended the decadeslong conflict, describing Congo as the “darkest, deepest” part of Africa. “For 35 years, it was a vicious war. Nine million people were killed with machetes. I stopped it. … I got it stopped and saved lots of lives,” he asserted.
The Associated Press previously fact-checked Trump’s claim and found the war far from over. Now residents report clashes in several hot spots, often between the Rwanda-backed M23 rebels who seized key cities earlier this year and militia fighting alongside Congolese forces.
A final peace deal between Congo and the rebels, facilitated by Qatar, appears to have stalled. Each side has accused the other of violating peace terms.
Here’s what people say about Trump’s latest claim: