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From Our Own Correspondent: Congo's cycles of conflict with M23 rebels

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Mai Mai militia from the APCLS armed group seen after recapturing the town of Burungo from M23 forces, Masisi territory

04/11/2023 GMT

Congo's cycles of conflict with M23 rebels

BBC World Service - From Our Own Correspondent, Congo's cycles of conflict with M23 rebels

In North Kivu, the Congolese army and its proxies fight M23 rebels year after year

The Congolese army fights M23 in North Kivu; talking peace and war in Geneva; France's Pacific penal colony in New Caledonia and Turkey's 100 years as a republic

Pascale Harter introduces insight, wit and analysis from BBC correspondents, reporters and writers from around the world.

The eastern regions of the Democratic Republic of Congo have been plagued by repeated cycles of conflict - and they're full of militia and rebel groups vying for control. Most recently, the Congolese army has been engaged in a long running fight here with the rebel force known as the M23 - and both sides have outside backers and employ local proxies of their own. Hugh Kinsella Cunningham has seen the dire consequences for local civilians over many outbreaks of violence in North Kivu province. 

The Swiss city of Geneva is not short of luxury outlets for conspicuous consumption - but it's also home to many humanitarian organisations working tirelessly to protect and speak out for the most vulnerable people on Earth. As diplomats, academics, NGO staffers and others gather there for the annual "Peace Week" to discuss the enduring importance of international law and human rights, Imogen Foulkes spoke to former UN staffer Ziad Ra'ad al Hussein about why it will always be right to insist on universal standards and limits - even in times of war. 

The French territory of New Caledonia might look like paradise - a group of islands in the Pacific, halfway between Australia and Fiji. But its natural beauty is offset by a history full of suffering: because this was once a place of detention and exile for anti-colonial rebels, who'd tried to overthrow French control of  their own countries. They came from all over the world, but many were Algerians - whose home was half a world away. What became of them? French-Algerian writer Chahrazade Douah went on the journey of a lifetime to find out. 

And as Turkey marks 100 years of history as a modern republic, Misha Glenny explains why the centenary poses some awkward questions for today's Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan. There's also the small matter of an incident in the Sultan's bathroom in Istanbul's ornate Dolmabahce Palace...

(Image: Mai Mai militia from the APCLS armed group seen after recapturing the town of Burungo from M23 forces, Masisi territory, North Kivu province, Democratic Republic of Congo, 14 October 2023. Credit: Hugh Kinsella Cunningham)

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