Overview
- Representatives of the Congolese government and the M23 rebel group signed the Doha Framework for a Comprehensive Peace Agreement at a ceremony in Qatar under Qatari and U.S. mediation.
- The roadmap comprises eight protocols, with earlier agreements on prisoner releases and a ceasefire-monitoring mechanism that U.S. envoy Massad Boulos said have progressed slowly.
- Negotiations now turn to six unresolved protocols covering humanitarian access, the return of refugees and internally displaced people, restoration of state authority in rebel-held areas, and detailed timelines.
- Both sides agreed to form an independent implementation committee, and Qatar said it would also issue recommendations on recompensation within a national reconciliation framework.
- Officials and M23 representatives cautioned that conditions will not change immediately as fighting continues; the rebels earlier captured Goma and Bukavu and are widely alleged to receive Rwandan support, which Kigali denies.