The United Nations expressed deep concern at reports of M23 rebels and Rwandan troops advancing south towards the Congolese city of Bukavu on Thursday, as the militants sought also to assert their control over east Congo's largest city Goma.

Rwanda-backed M23 rebels have tightened their grip on Goma, the biggest city in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), signalling a major blow to the Congolese army and a serious escalation in a years-long conflict that has seen hundreds of people killed and millions displaced.

As an East African bloc urged an immediate ceasefire in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwandan-backed M23 rebels who seized the city of Goma extended their advance on Wednesday, and Congo said it planned a campaign to recover lost territory.

M23 rebels, backed by Rwanda, are advancing towards Bukavu in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. This move follows their capture of Goma, raising the specter of renewed regional conflict. Diplomatic efforts,

The Rwanda-backed armed group M23 vowed on Thursday to march on the DR Congo capital, Kinshasa, as its fighters made further advances in the mineral-r

With the active engagement of Pakistan’s High Commissioner in Rwanda Naeemullah Khan, the Rwandan authorities have allowed the entry of stranded Pakistanis into Rwanda. Following the recent escalation of conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo, around 150 Pakistanis were stranded in the city of Goma.

A conflict that has raged for decades reached a flashpoint this week when rebels backed by Rwanda marched on a key Congolese city in a bid to occupy territory and exploit minerals.

Rwanda, which diplomats say backs M23 fighters who seized Goma in Democratic Republic of Congo this week, called on Wednesday for a ceasefire across eastern Congo and for Congo to negotiate with the rebels while denying Rwandan troops were involved.

"In Bukavu, foreigners are fleeing," missionaries from the capital of the Congolese province of South Kivu tell Fides. "The various embassies in Kinshasa have ordered their compatriots to leave the city because they fear that the M23 rebels could conquer it after taking control of Goma and the province of North Kivu,

The Rwanda-backed armed group M23 vowed on Thursday to march on the DR Congo capital, Kinshasa, as its fighters made further advances in the mineral-rich east of the country.

President Paul Kagame has said Rwanda is ready for "confrontation," rejecting growing criticism over its support for M23 rebels in eastern Congo