Apple denies allegations that it uses blood minerals from Congo in products

A day after Kinshasa announced that it was filing a complaint against Apple, the company will provide an answer on Wednesday evening. For months, the African country has accused Apple of buying minerals smuggled into Rwanda from the unstable east. In Congo’s neighboring country, they are laundered and “integrated into global supply chains,” Kinshasa said.

Apple now says it informed its suppliers earlier this year, “as the conflict intensified,” that they should “suspend supplies of tin, tantalum, tungsten and gold to their smelters and refineries from Congo and Rwanda.” Congo already declared the company in default in April.

Rwanda also rejected the accusations. According to Kigali, this is “a repetition of unfounded accusations and suspicions, intended to generate media interest in one of the largest companies in the world.”

In the eastern Congo, which is rich in minerals, violence has occurred regularly since the 1990s. Tensions have worsened since the return of M23 rebels in late 2021, who are backed by Rwanda.