Strewn with rubble from mortar and artillery fire, the eastern DR Congo city of Goma awoke on Thursday to a new abnormal -- hiding from bandits and counting the dead.

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,

Democratic Republic of Congo's M23 rebels are moving south towards Bukavu, the capital of South Kivu province, in what appears to be an attempt to expand their area of control in the country's east after capturing the city of Goma.

Rwanda-backed rebels claimed on Monday 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.

Rebels backed by Rwanda captured more towns in eastern Congo as fighters moved beyond the key city of Goma in an apparent attempt to expand their control in the conflict-battered region

By Yassin Kombi and Sonia Rolley GOMA, Democratic Republic of Congo (Reuters) - Rwandan-backed rebels strengthened their control over east Congo's largest city, Goma, on Wednesday as columns of Romanian mercenaries hired to fight for Congo entered Rwanda under tight supervision by Rwandan security forces.

Rwanda-backed rebels captured large parts of Goma, the biggest city in eastern Congo, including its airport, the United Nations said, as Rwanda's president on Wednesday joined calls for a ceasefire in the decadeslong conflict amid mounting international pressure.