,
Write Hatem Mohamed
Excellency Dean of African Ambassadors, Amb. Dr, Mohamadou labarang
Excellency Ambassadors and members of the diplomatic corps
Religious leaders
Friends of Rwanda
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Good evening.
Thank you all for joining us this evening as we celebrate the 32nd Anniversary of Rwanda’s Liberation. Earlier this year, in April 2026, many of you stood with us to commemorate and honour victims of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. Today, we celebrate the historic day when the Rwanda Patriotic Front stopped that genocide and began the difficult task and journey of rebuilding a nation that had been devastated. On this date, Rwandans remember and greatly honour their sons and daughters that sacrificed their lives to liberate their country. There are our heroes and heroines.
Before 1994, Rwanda was a country on its knees. Decades of divisive politics, discrimination and an ideology of hatred had torn apart the social fabric of the country. In 1994, the economy was destroyed, institutions had collapsed. Over 1 million Rwandans were massacred in 100 days, and millions of others displaced, or living in refugee camps in neighboring countries, with little hope of ever returning home. Rwanda was, in every sense, a failed and broken state.
Rwandans are now united and live in peace with one another. Under the leadership of His Excellency President Paul Kagame, and guided by the unity of Rwandans, accountable leadership, and the resilience of its people, Rwanda has since transformed into a stable, secure, forward-looking, and a developing country.
Yet, even today as we celebrate this progress, we cannot ignore the existential threat that continues to hang over Rwanda’s security, stability, and unity. This threat comes from the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, where the FDLR, a genocidal terrorist group founded by the very perpetrators of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, continues to operate with impunity and always attempting to attack Rwanda from bases across the border in DRC.
The FDLR terrorist group and her affiliated militias attack Congolese Tutsi in Eastern DRC and continues the campaign of spreading genocide ideology against the Tutsi communities. The FDLR terrorist group is fighting alongside the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FADRC) and receives arms, logistics and finance from the government.
The government of Rwanda continues to inform the international community that the solution to the conflict in EDRC does not lie in sanctioning Rwanda for defending its people against a genocidal force, lasting peace in EDRC lies in a political solution that addresses root causes of the conflict, including; destroying and disarming FDLR terrorist group and its affiliated militias, and stopping Anti-Tutsi genocide ideology. Rwanda remains firmly committed to regional stability and constructive dialogue that addresses the underlying causes of insecurity in Eastern DRC. Lasting peace demands cooperation, mutual respect, and a shared commitment to the dignity and security of all the people of the Great Lakes region without discrimination.
This evening we recognize and celebrate strong and growing friendship and cooperation between Rwanda and the Arab Republic of Egypt. Our two countries continue to deepen cooperation across a wide range of sectors, reflecting a shared vision for Africa’s unity, security and prosperity.
This partnership has been reinforced through sustained high-level meetings. Last year, in September 2025, His Excellency President Paul Kagame paid an official visit to Cairo, where he and His Excellency President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi presided over the signing of several agreements covering investment promotion, water resource management, reciprocal land allocation, and housing and urban development among other existing MoUs. This momentum has continued through an exchange of high-level Ministerial visits between our two countries.
Excellences, Dear guests
I invite you all to visit Rwanda, to discover its beauty, experience its hospitality, and explore the many opportunities it offers for business, investment, tourism, and innovation. Trek through the hills of Volcanoes National Park and encounter mountain gorillas up close, one of the most extraordinary wildlife experiences anywhere in the world. Venture into Akagera National Park for a classic African safari, home to the Big Five, including lions, leopards, elephants, black rhinos, and buffalos.
To the Rwandan community living in Egypt,


