More pressure on Rwanda as Congo says rebel uprising has killed over 7,000 people this year

KINSHASA, Congo (AP) — Congo says over 7,000 people have died this year as Rwanda-backed M23 rebels have captured unprecedented amounts of territory in its mineral-rich eastern region. And the European Union says it will review an agreement with Rwanda on critical raw materials. Congo’s prime minister told the U.N. Human Rights Council on Monday that the region’s security and humanitarian situation “has reached alarming levels.” The rebels have taken the provincial capitals of Goma and Bukavu. M23 is the most potent of armed groups vying for a foothold in Congo’s east, which has trillions of dollars of mostly untapped mineral wealth crucial to the world’s technology.

A French surgeon is on trial accused of raping or abusing 299 people

VANNES, France (AP) — A former surgeon went on trial in France on Monday for the alleged rape or sexual abuse of 299 victims, most of them children who were his patients, in what investigators and his own notebooks describe as a pattern of violence spanning over three decades. “I committed odious acts,” Joël Le Scouarnec told the court in Vannes. “They were only children.” The 74-year-old faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted, on top of 15 years he has been serving after being found guilty in 2020 of rape and sexual assault of children. Le Scouarnec told the court he acknowledges committing rapes and sexual assaults.

Merz prioritizes Ukraine and US, vows to tackle migration and economy

BERLIN (AP) — Provisional results confirm that mainstream conservatives led by Friedrich Merz won Germany’s national election, while a far-right party surged to become the nation’s second-largest. Merz at the helm will ensure that Ukraine has an even stronger supporter in the European Union’s largest country and creates hopes for renewal in an economic powerhouse that has been badly battered. The campaign was dominated by worries about the yearslong stagnation of Europe’s biggest economy and pressure to curb migration. It took place against a background of growing uncertainty over the future of Ukraine and Europe’s alliance with the United States.

US pressures Ukraine to nix its UN resolution demanding Russian forces withdraw

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.S. has pressured Ukraine to withdraw its European-backed U.N. resolution demanding an immediate withdrawal of Russian forces from Ukraine in favor of an American proposal that doesn’t mention Moscow’s invasion. That’s according to a U.S. official and a European diplomat on Sunday. But two European diplomats said Ukraine refused to pull its draft resolution, and the U.N. General Assembly will vote on it Monday. That’s the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The diplomats say the 193-nation General Assembly is expected to vote on the U.S. draft resolution afterward. The Trump administration is also seeking a vote on its resolution in the powerful U.N. Security Council.