Residents flee Goma as M23 rebels enter DRC’s largest eastern city

Residents successful Goma, the largest metropolis successful the eastbound of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), were fleeing connected Monday aft the Rwanda-backed M23 equipped radical claimed to person captured the determination hub from Congolese forces arsenic warring escalated contempt calls from the United Nations Security Council for the rebels to withdraw.

Gunshots rang retired crossed Goma overnight earlier dozens of rebels successful subject azygous aboriginal Monday greeting marched into the superior of North Kivu province, which sits connected the borderline with Rwanda successful the volatile portion affluent successful minerals that are captious to overmuch of the world’s technology.

The Congolese authorities confirmed the beingness of M23 rebels successful Goma, 1,500km (930 miles) eastbound of the superior Kinshasa, but stopped abbreviated of saying they were successful power of the city.

In a connection connected X, authorities spokesperson Patrick Muyaya asked Goma residents to enactment astatine location and besides urged Congolese nationals astir the satellite to mobilise successful enactment of the country. “No centimetre volition beryllium fixed up!!!” Muyaya wrote.

The March 23 Movement (M23) is 1 of astir 100 equipped groups vying for a foothold successful the mineral-rich portion successful the decades-long conflict. The rebels temporarily took implicit Goma successful 2012, earlier they were forced to propulsion retired nether planetary pressure, and resurfaced successful precocious 2021, with expanding enactment from Rwanda, according to Congo’s authorities and UN experts. Rwanda has denied specified support.

Rwanda’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs accused DRC of failing to participate a dialog with M23, which it described arsenic a “Congolese rebel radical warring to support their community”.

That failure, it said, has prolonged the warring that continues to contiguous “a superior menace to Rwanda’s information and territorial integrity, and necessitates Rwanda’s sustained antiaircraft posture”.