The militia seized the pivotal city of Goma, threatening a new humanitarian crisis in a region that has suffered decades of fighting.

Fighting has escalated sharply in recent weeks in eastern Congo, where rebels have seized key towns and are closing in on the city of Goma, the government’s last stronghold in the North Kivu province,

In recent weeks, the armed conflict between the M23/AFC and the Congolese army, backed by their allies, has flared up again in the province of North Kivu and spread to the neighbouring province of South Kivu.

The Democratic Republic of Congo’s government says the Rwanda-backed rebels’ advance constitutes a “declaration of war."

The M23 group is one of about 100 armed factions vying for a foothold in eastern Congo in one of Africa’s longest wars, which has displaced 4.5 million people.

Residents in eastern Congo’s largest city, Goma, woke up on Monday morning uncertain about who is in control of the city, which Rwanda-backed rebels claimed to have captured

The governor of eastern Congo’s North Kivu province has died from injuries ... Banchereau reported from Dakar, Senegal. Associated Press writer Christina Malkia in Kinshasa, Congo, contributed ...

Goma, Congo — Residents in eastern Congo’s largest city, Goma, were fleeing on Monday after Rwanda-backed rebels claimed to have captured the regional hub from Congolese forces as fighting escalated despite calls from the U.N. Security Council for the insurgents to withdraw.

GOMA, Congo — The governor of eastern Congo’s North Kivu province has died from injuries ... Banchereau reported from Dakar, Senegal. Associated Press writer Christina Malkia in Kinshasa ...

Some 400,000 people have been displaced in North and South Kivu since the beginning of this ... We operate from Cape Town, Dakar, Abuja, Johannesburg, Nairobi and Washington DC.

President Emmanuel Macron is stepping up diplomatic efforts to address the worsening crisis in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), where violence between the Congolese army and M23 rebels has displaced hundreds of thousands.