Rwanda-backed rebels claimed they captured eastern Congo’s strategic city of Goma, the hub of a region containing trillions of dollars in mineral wealth that remains largely untapped, the Associated Press reported.

M23 rebels in the Democratic Republic of Congo were reported to have taken the key eastern city of Goma in fierce fighting with government forces that sent streams of refugees fleeing area communities.

In DR Congo, fighting continues in the Eastern city of Goma. MONUSCO, the UN peacekeeping mission in the country says civilians are faced with unimaginable suffering.

By Yassin Kombi and Sonia Rolley GOMA, Democratic Republic of Congo (Reuters) -The United States told Rwanda it was "deeply troubled" by the fall of Goma in eastern Congo to Rwandan-backed M23 rebels,

A Rwanda Defence Force (RDF) soldier stands in position at the Grande Barrier border amid clashes between M23 the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC), at the border crossing point at Gisenyi,

Rebels led by the M23 group claim to have taken control of Goma, a key city in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. The rapid advance, which has killed at least 13 soldiers from international peacekeeping forces,

The United States urged the United Nations Security Council on Tuesday to consider measures to halt an offensive by Rwandan troops and M23 rebel forces in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo as a conflict there escalates.