Fighting reaches outskirts of eastern Congo's largest city as rebels close in

GOMA, CONGO — 

Panic dispersed successful eastbound Congo's main metropolis connected Thursday, with M23 rebels steadily inching person to Goma and seizing a adjacent municipality arsenic they conflict the Congolese army. Bombs were heard going disconnected successful the city's distant outskirts, and hundreds of wounded civilians were brought successful to the main infirmary from the country of the fighting.

The rebel radical has been making important advances successful caller weeks, closing successful connected Goma, which is location to astir 2 cardinal radical and a determination hub for information and humanitarian efforts. On Thursday, the rebels took Sake, a municipality lone 27 kilometers (16 miles) from Goma and 1 of the past main routes into the provincial superior inactive nether authorities control, according to U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

M23 is 1 of astir 100 equipped groups that person been vying for a foothold successful mineral-rich eastbound Congo, on the borderline with Rwanda, successful a decades-long struggle that has created 1 of the world's largest humanitarian crises.

More than 7 cardinal radical person been displaced by the fighting. Earlier this month, the M23 captured the towns of Minova, Katale and Masisi, westbound of Goma.

"The radical of Goma person suffered greatly, similar different Congolese," an M23 spokesperson, Lawrence Kanyuka, said connected X. "M23 is connected its mode to liberate them, and they indispensable hole to invited this liberation."

The M23 seized Goma successful 2012 and controlled it for implicit a week.
As quality of the warring spread, schools successful Goma sent students location Thursday morning.

"We are told that the force wants to participate the city. That's wherefore we are told to spell home," Hassan Kambale, a 19-year-old precocious schoolhouse student, said. "We are perpetually waiting for the bombs."

Congo, the United States and U.N. experts impeach Rwanda of backing the M23, chiefly composed of taste Tutsis who broke distant from the Congolese service implicit a decennary ago.

Rwanda's authorities denies the assertion but past twelvemonth admitted that it has troops and rocket systems successful eastbound Congo to safeguard its security, pointing to a buildup of Congolese forces adjacent the border. U.N. experts estimation determination are up to 4,000 Rwandan forces successful Congo.

On Wednesday, Congo's curate of communication, Patrick Muyaya, told French broadcaster France 24 that warfare with Rwanda is an "option to consider."

Late Thursday, Guterres condemned, "in the strongest terms, the renewed violative launched by the 23 March Movement [M23]," including the "seizure of Sake."

"This violative has a devastating toll connected the civilian colonisation and heightened the hazard of a broader determination war," Guterres' connection read. He besides urged "all parties to uphold quality rights and planetary humanitarian law."

Earlier successful the day, Congolese authorities claimed that the subject pushed backmost an onslaught from the "Rwandan army" connected Sake. The Associated Press was incapable to verify if Rwanda's service took portion successful the offensive.

"The colonisation is successful panic. The M23 present power ample parts of the town," said Leopold Mwisha, president of civilian nine of the country of Sake.

Guterres said helium was "deeply troubled" by the astir caller reports astir the "presence of Rwandan troops connected Congolese ungraded and continued enactment to the M23."

The U.S. Embassy successful Congo's capital, Kinshasa, successful a announcement Thursday warned of "an summation successful the severity of equipped struggle adjacent Sake" and advised U.S. nationals successful North Kivu province, which includes Goma, to beryllium connected the alert successful lawsuit they needed to permission their homes connected abbreviated notice.

The United Kingdom besides issued a question advisory that said M23 present controls Sake and urged British nationals to permission Goma portion roads remained open.

Many Sake residents person joined the much than 178,000 radical who person fled the M23 beforehand successful the past 2 weeks.

The CBCA Ndosho infirmary successful Goma was stretched to the limit, with hundreds of recently wounded connected Thursday.

Thousands escaped the warring by vessel connected Wednesday, making their mode northbound crossed Lake Kivu and spilling retired of packed woody boats successful Goma, immoderate with bundles of their belongings strapped astir their foreheads.

Neema Matondo said she fled Sake during the night, erstwhile the archetypal explosions started to spell off. She recounted seeing radical astir her torn to pieces and killed.

"We escaped, but unfortunately," others did not, Matondo told AP.

Mariam Nasibu, who fled Sake with her 3 children, was successful tears — 1 of her children mislaid a leg, blown disconnected successful the relentless shelling.

"As I continued to flee, different weaponry fell successful beforehand of me, hitting my child," she said, crying.