Kabila's New Movement: Another Form of Rebellion?

Joseph Kabila has put himself at the head of a political-military front that absorbs the leaders of the M23 and AFC. Kinshasa calls it the same rebellion in a new uniform. Its founders say it is something different.

Former Congolese president Joseph Kabila has taken the most direct step yet into the war in eastern Congo. On 12 October, in Goma, he announced the Front pour la Refondation de la Nation (FRN), a "politico-military" coalition that replaces the AFC/M23 alliance and places him at its head.

His deputies are familiar names from the rebellion: Corneille Nangaa, who led the AFC, M23 political chief Bertrand Bisimwa, Freddy Kaniki and Sultani Makenga. Makenga is reported to keep command of the armed wing. The AFC was formally dissolved on 14 October and its assets and obligations passed to the new front. The FRN has said it also takes on the commitments made by AFC/M23 in the Doha negotiations.

From denial to leadership

For months the Congolese authorities accused Kabila of backing the rebellion. He denied it. His visit to rebel-held Goma in May 2025, and the arrival of several former allies in AFC/M23 positions, fed suspicion that he was building an alternative centre of power.

In September 2025, a military court in Kinshasa sentenced him to death in absentia for treason, war crimes and crimes against humanity, accusing him of collaborating with the Rwandan-backed rebellion. Kabila rejected the case as politically motivated, and his party called the trial political. Rwanda denies backing M23, although UN experts have said its army played a critical role in the group's offensive.

Kabila ruled the country from 2001 to 2019, taking office at 29 after the assassination of his father, Laurent-Désiré Kabila.

Two readings of the same announcement

The government's reading is blunt. Spokesman Patrick Muyaya said the movement is a new face on an old plan, with the same players and the same methods. Kinshasa has also accused Kabila of preparing a "general attack" on the country.

The founders describe it differently. The FRN's stated aim is to end what it calls tyranny, by any means, including force. Kabila has criticised the Tshisekedi administration over corruption, poor governance and military setbacks in the east. He has also described the government as a dictatorship.

Some analysts see more than a rebrand. Kabila carries greater political weight than Nangaa, and he has connections across the region, including in Namibia, Kenya and South Africa. Others urge caution. The announcement alone does not show how much command or independent support the new front actually has.

What it means for peace talks

The timing matters. Representatives of the government and the M23 were expected to meet in Qatar in November, and the two sides agreed a roadmap in Switzerland in August to revive the stalled Doha process. Only the ceasefire commitments form part of the first protocol, with six others still unsigned. Analysts warn that the new coalition could undermine the process, and some expect more fighting.

The question that matters most

The question in AFM's headline is open to argument. By its founding language and its military structure, the FRN is an armed movement seeking political change. By its own account, it is also a platform for a wider national project. Both can be true, and which description sticks will depend on what it does next.

For ordinary Congolese, the answer will not come from labels. The conflict in the east has killed thousands and displaced hundreds of thousands of people, and any escalation lands first on civilians. The most important signs to watch are whether the Doha talks go ahead in November, whether the front's claims of unity hold, and whether fighting spreads.