An insurgency led by the M23 rebels in the east Democratic Republic of Congo has escalated and they have taken control of the key eastern city of Goma.
Goma is the largest eastern city of DR Congo. In a statement, the M23 rebels urged residents of Goma to remain calm. However, the residents are panicking as they don't know how much worse the situation could get.
According to DR Congo's government, the Rwandan army was present in the city of Goma and they are working to prevent loss of life.
Who are M23 rebels?
The M23 refers to March 23, 2009, the accord that ended a previous Tutsi-led revolt in eastern Congo. This is the latest group of ethnic Tutsi-led insurgents to take up arms against Congolese forces.
The M23 was formed in 2012 when nearly 300 soldiers, the majority of them former members of the National Congress for the Defence of the People, turned against the DRC government, citing poor conditions in the army and the government's unwillingness to implement the 23 March 2009 peace deal.
In 2012, rebels took control of Goma but later withdrew after the government’s counterattack.
The group has accused the government of Congo of not living up to the peace deal and fully integrating Congolese Tutsis into the army and administration.
The group also vows to defend Tutsi, an ethnic group of the African Great Lakes region, interests, particularly against ethnic Hutu militias such as the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), founded by Hutus. After participating in the 1994 genocide of close to 1 million Tutsis, Hutus fled Rwanda.
Hundreds of people fled their homes after M23 rebels seized Goma, the capital of North Kivu province.
For more than a year, M23 has controlled Congo's coltan-mining region of Rubaya, generating an estimated $800,000 per month through a production tax.
The government of Congo, the UN and the United States have criticised Rwanda for fuelling the conflict by deploying its own troops to support the rebel group. However, Rwanda denied any backing of the rebels. Rwanda in turn accused Congo of fighting alongside the FDLR, which attacked Tutsis in both countries. Since 1996, Rwanda has had a long history of military intervention inside Congo, claiming they were defending themselves against local militia groups.
