Democratic Republic of Congo’s President Felix Tshisekedi has insisted that his troops are mounting a strong military response as Rwanda-backed fighters advanced in the east of the country.
The weeks-long march of the M23 armed group, which has captured vast swathes of eastern DRC including most of the key city of Goma, has prompted calls for crisis talks and warnings of a looming humanitarian crisis.
DRC’s mineral-rich east has been wracked by decades of conflict involving scores of armed groups that can be partly traced back to the 1994 Rwandan genocide.
In his first remarks since the latest crisis began, President Tshisekedi said a vigorous and coordinated response against the M23 rebels and their sponsors is underway.
He also condemned the inaction of the international community in the face of an unprecedented worsening of the security situation.
