Police in Congo on Thursday fired teargas to disperse locals in Kinshasa, who stormed Western embassies to protest the bloodshed and violence in the eastern part of the African country.

The protesters, adopting a new approach by directing their ire at embassies, allege Western support for neighbouring Rwanda, accused of backing the Tutsi-led M23 rebellion threatening Goma, Reuters reported. 

Rwanda refutes the allegations, though Congo and Western nations like the United States and Belgium and a UN expert group contend the rebel faction benefits from Rwandan aid. 

Protesters convened at U.S. and French embassies and MONUSCO offices. Unauthenticated video footage purportedly shows a demonstrator removing the EU flag from a Kinshasa hotel entrance.

Some hurled stones in attempts to damage surveillance cameras at a U.S. embassy office, while chants of “Leave our country, we don’t want your hypocrisy” echoed.

Pepin Mbindu, a protester, accused Western powers of complicity, insisting Rwanda does not act alone and demanding their departure. 

Fabrice Malumba, a motorcyclist joining the demonstration at the U.S. embassy, criticised the international community’s silence on Congolese deaths, alleging they finance Rwanda.

Police dispersed the crowd with tear gas while Congo’s Vice Prime Minister Christophe Lutundula assured ambassadors of enhanced security measures in line with the Vienna Convention.

General Blaise Mbula Kilimba Limba, Kinshasa’s police chief, affirmed efforts to safeguard partner embassies. 

Decades of conflict in eastern Congo, fuelled by armed groups vying for land and resources, alongside brutal attacks on civilians, have claimed hundreds of thousands of lives and displaced over seven million.

Congo remains the leading global cobalt supplier and Africa’s primary copper producer.