Advances being made by the M23 rebel group in the Democratic Republic of Congo are "heightening the threat of a regional war," according to U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres.

Angolan President Joao Lourenco has urged warring parties in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to return to peace talks, which collapsed last year, the foreign ministry said.

A conflict that has raged for decades reached a flashpoint this week when rebels backed by Rwanda marched on a key Congolese city in a bid to occupy territory and exploit minerals.

M23 rebels have made rapid advances in the latest bout of conflict that has long-dogged the mineral-rich east.

Dead bodies lie on the streets of Goma in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, as heavy fighting continues between Rwanda-backed M23 rebels, and the DRC forces supported by international peacekeeping troops.

We will stay here in Congo and fight. If we do not stay alive here, let’s stay dead here,’ said Congo’s defence minister.

Since neighboring Rwanda’s Tutsi genocide, eastern DR Congo has faced relentless war. Beyond security concerns, Kigali profits immensely from exploiting the region’s vast mineral wealth, fueling ongoing conflict and instability.

The mineral-rich east of the Democratic Republic of Congo has been dogged by conflict for more than 30 years, since the 1994 Rwandan genocide.Numerous armed groups have competed with the central authorities for power and control of the potential fortune in this vast nation.

GOMA, DR Congo - The Rwandan-backed armed group M23 moved south as it closed in on a key military airport in DR Congo on Friday, a day after pledging to take the capital Kinshasa and as international criticism mounted.

Rwanda-backed fighters were in control of almost all of the DR Congo city of Goma Wednesday where residents were re-emerging after days of deadly fighting and Angola urged leaders of

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.