M23 rebels, backed by Rwandan troops, have taken control of Goma, the largest city in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, following an assault that began on Monday. While the city remained largely quiet on Wednesday, sporadic gunfire was reported in some outlying areas. The rebels seized Goma’s international airport on Tuesday, cutting off a key route for aid to reach the hundreds of thousands of displaced people in the region.
Residents described the situation in Goma as tense, with one person from the northern Majengo district noting that sporadic shots were fired by militias resisting the M23 advance. The attack on the city has led to widespread international condemnation of Rwanda and calls for a ceasefire. The United States urged the United Nations Security Council to take action to stop the offensive, with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio expressing concern over the escalation and urging respect for Congo’s territorial integrity in a conversation with Rwandan President Paul Kagame.
The M23 group’s latest offensive is part of a long-standing history of Tutsi-led, Rwandan-backed insurgencies in eastern Congo, stemming from the aftermath of the 1994 Rwandan genocide. Rwanda argues that some of the perpetrators of the genocide are sheltering in Congo, forming militias that threaten both Congo’s Tutsi population and Rwanda. Congo rejects these claims, accusing Rwanda of using the M23 to control mineral-rich areas in eastern Congo.
The presence of Rwandan troops in Goma has been confirmed by both the Congolese government and the United Nations, though Rwanda has not explicitly acknowledged sending troops into Congo. Instead, Rwanda insists its military is defending against threats from Congolese militias.
In Goma, the city’s hospitals are overwhelmed, treating hundreds of injured civilians, though the true death toll remains unclear as many victims have died outside medical facilities.
