DR Congo’s rebels vow to take Kinshasa after claiming capture of Goma

UN claims M23 fighters backed by thousands of Rwandan soldiers successful lightning violative connected country’s mineral-rich east.

Rwanda-backed rebels are closing successful connected the cardinal eastbound Democratic Republic of the Congo metropolis of Bukavu, promising to proceed their lightning violative until they instrumentality the nationalist capital.

The bloody struggle successful the eastbound DRC took a melodramatic crook this week erstwhile Kigali-backed fighters from the M23 claimed to instrumentality power of Goma successful North Kivu state earlier advancing southwards successful the absorption of Bukavu, the superior of South Kivu.

“We volition proceed the march of liberation each the mode to Kinshasa,” declared rebel person Corneille Nangaa connected Thursday, 4 days aft the radical said it had captured Goma, wherever warring near dozens killed and saw surrendering Congolese soldiers being trucked retired of the metropolis to an undisclosed location.

Corneille Nangaa, caput of a conjugation of groups including the M23, says rebels are acceptable to march connected Kinshasa [Brian Inganga/AP Photo]

On Thursday, M23 fighters were reportedly wrong striking region of a strategical subject airdrome successful the metropolis of Kavumu, located astir 40km (25 miles) northbound of Bukavu, according to section sources quoted by AFP quality agency.

A United Nations spokesperson warned connected the aforesaid time that the organisation was acrophobic by “credible reports” that the M23 was “moving rapidly” towards Bukavu, which has a colonisation of 2 million.

UN experts assertion the M23 – 1 of much than 100 equipped groups vying for power successful DRC’s eastbound – is backed by immoderate 4,000 soldiers from Rwanda, which Kinshasa says is pillaging invaluable resources from the mineral-rich territory.

Rwanda, for its part, says its superior purpose is to eradicate fighters linked to the 1994 genocide, accusing the Congolese subject of joining forces with taste Hutu-led militias bent connected slaughtering Tutsis and threatening its neighbour.

The rebel fighters assertion they are unfastened to dialog with the authorities successful Kinshasa. But Congolese Defence Minister Guy Kabombo Muadiamvita rejected talks this week, saying successful a video connection that plans for immoderate dialog with the rebels beryllium “burned immediately”.

In effect to the fast-moving crisis, leaders of determination bloc the Southern African Development Community (SADC) convened an exigency acme successful Zimbabwe’s capital, Harare, connected Friday.

The gathering follows soaring tensions betwixt Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame and South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa aft the deaths of 13 South African soldiers successful DRC’s east.

Rwanda’s Foreign Minister Olivier Nduhungirehe said connected Thursday: “We are acceptable to support ourselves if we are attacked by a conjugation including South African forces.”

Goma remained mostly without energy and h2o connected Thursday, arsenic the bodies of respective alleged authorities soldiers laic successful the streets.

The M23 violative has heightened an already dire humanitarian situation successful the region, causing nutrient and h2o shortages and forcing fractional a cardinal radical from their homes this month, according to the International Organization for Migration.

“Millions of radical were already displaced by years of struggle successful eastbound DRC, and humanitarian needs were massive. With the existent alarming upsurge successful fighting, an already dire concern is rapidly becoming precise overmuch worse,” said IOM manager wide Amy Pope.

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Al Jazeera and quality agencies