The Democratic Republic of Congo has initiated a bid to have the country's former President Joseph Kabila stripped of immunity from prosecution.

Kinshasa alleges that there is evidence Kabila has been supporting the Rwanda-backed M23 rebels who seized the strategic city of Goma in the east and then Bukavu, which they took in February.

Why is Congo's taking action?

Congo's Justice Minister Constant Mutamba said on Wednesday the Senate had received a request from the military's attorney general to revoke the prosecutorial immunity that Kabila enjoys as a senator for life.

Mutamba said Congo has gathered clear evidence of "war crimes, crimes against humanity and massacres of peaceful civilians and military personnel."

Mutamba added that Kabila should return to Congo to face justice or risk being tried in absentia.

Kabila went into self-imposed exile in South Africa in 2023, following a fallout between himself and President Felix Tshisekedi.

Last year, Tshisekedi accused Kabila of supporting the M23 rebels and "preparing an insurrection" in the eastern DRC, claims Kabila denies.

Conflict in eastern DRC

Conflict in the mineral-rich east claimed some 3,000 lives and exacerbated one of the world's largest humanitarian crises, with millions of people displaced.

Earlier this month Congo's military and M23 agreed to work towards a truce but reports indicate that fighting has continued in the eastern province of South Kivu.

Kabila came to power in 2001 after the assassination of his father Laurent Kabila. He refused to stand down when his final term officially ended in 2016, leading to deadly protests, before finally agreeing to leave office following an election in 2018.

Edited by: Louis Oelofse