KINSHASA, Oct 12, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - The authorities in Kinshasa on Saturday accused anti-government M23 fighters of having committed hundreds of "assassinations and summary executions" last month in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

The Rwandan-backed group, which seized swathes of territory in the restive, mineral-rich region earlier this year, denied the claim.

Both sides in July signed a declaration in principle in favour of a permanent ceasefire, after the DR Congo and Rwanda signed a peace deal in Washington in June.

But the accords have not led to an end in the violence, even if the frontline of the conflict has stabilised.

Congolese Interior Minister Jacquemain Shabani said in a statement that "more than 272 cases of assassination and summary execution" were recorded in the areas controlled by the M23.

There were also "more than 300 cases of rape (and) more than 300 cases of physical torture", he added.

The statement did not say specifically where the alleged atrocities were carried out or under what circumstances.

Last month, fierce fighting broke out between the M23 and the Congolese army after a lull of several weeks.

Both sides accused the other of "trampling" on peace efforts or "violating" its principles.

Kinshasa has also condemned the continued "parallel administration" of the M23, and its levying of "taxes" on hospitals and schools.

The secretary-general of the political wing of the M23, Benjamin Mbonimpa, called the accusations an "abject litany, a string of shameful lies", in a post on X.

The DR Congo government wants the withdrawal of Rwandan troops from its territory.

Rwanda, for its part, has made the lifting of "defensive measures" conditional on the neutralisation of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), an armed group that it considers an "existential threat".

On Friday evening, the Congolese army called on "all factions" of the FDLR to "lay down their weapons" -- a key provision of the Washington accord signed in June.