Democratic Republic of Congo's M23 rebels are moving south towards Bukavu, the capital of South Kivu province, in what appears to be an attempt to expand their area of control in the country's east after capturing the city of Goma.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio called for a urgent cease-fire in the conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo saying Washington was "deeply troubled" by a recent escalation in the fighting.
A rebel alliance claimed the capture of the biggest city in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s mineral-rich eastern region this week, pushing back against resistance from government troops backed by regional and UN intervention forces.
Democratic Republic of Congo President Felix Tshisekedi has vowed “a vigorous and coordinated response” against a rebel alliance that has besieged swaths of the nation’s mineral-rich east and forced hundreds of local troops and foreign mercenaries to surrender.
M23 rebels in the Democratic Republic of Congo were reported to have taken the key eastern city of Goma in fierce fighting with government forces that sent streams of refugees fleeing area communities.
Congo government forces were nowhere to be seen as the M23 rebels in Democratic Republic of Congo were moving south on Wednesday towards Bukavu, the capital of South Kivu province
Authorities say the governor of eastern Congo’s North Kivu province has died from injuries sustained in fighting on the front line as M23 rebels close in on Goma.
M23 rebels, with support from Rwandan troops, marched into Goma earlier this week and are now advancing south toward Bukavu.
Members of the M23 rebel group gather to supervise Congolese potential recruits for the M23 rebel group before being taken to training centres run by M23 rebels, amid clashes between M23 rebels and the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC),
Kenyan President William Ruto, who chairs the East African Community, announced that he had convened an Extraordinary Summit mid-week to discuss the security crisis in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Reuters quoted the spokesperson as saying that the UN is deeply concerned by these developments, which are backed by "credible reports."