Ugandan troops have taken up peacekeeping duties in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo as part of the East African Community Regional Force.
They will be expected to protect civilians in the areas of Bunagana, Kiwanja and Mabenga in Rutshuru territory.
The troops are also tasked with overseeng the withdrawal of the M23 rebels from an area they’ve occupied since last June.
The 2,000-strong force will also oversee the reopening of trade routes between the border town of Bunagana and the regional capital, Goma.
This is being seen a key milestone towards the full deployment of the regional force, which the East African Community countries see as part of a local solution to the long years of conflict in eastern DR Congo.
The M23 rebels in Democratic Republic of Congo are withdrawing from the eastern border town of Bunagana and are expected to hand it over to Ugandan peacekeeping troops, the group’s spokesperson has said.
Ugandan troops believed to be in their thousands were on Thursday afternoon seen crossing into the town.
M23 spokesman Major Willy Ngoma said that they will hand over the town on Friday morning.
The withdrawal is part of a deal brokered by regional heads of state and army chiefs following meetings held in Angola, Burundi and Kenya, Mr Ngoma said.
The town of Bunagana town was once the rebels’ headquarters. They recaptured it in last June.
The rebels are meant to withdraw from all areas of Rutshuru, Masisi and Nyiragongo that it has occupied since hostilities resumed last year.
In a statement, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has said the country’s troops were going in Bunagana “to act as a neutral force as the Congolese use time to sort out their political problems”.
Burundi and Kenya have already deployed troops in territories where the rebels have left. South Sudan is also expected to send in troops.
A relative calm reigns in the war-torn part of the eastern DR Congo, where more than 500,000 people have been displaced by the fighting.