The security situation in the city of Goma is deteriorating, and journalists can no longer report, the media has been forced into silence, there is no stable access to electricity or the internet. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) is urgently alerting the international community to this crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and calling on the parties involved in conflict to respect and protect the public’s right to information.

The governor of eastern Congo’s North-Kivu province has died from injuries sustained during fighting on the front line, authorities said Friday, as M23 rebels closed in on the provincial capital. M23 made significant territorial gains in recent weeks,

The militia seized the pivotal city of Goma, threatening a new humanitarian crisis in a region that has suffered decades of fighting.

The ICRC has treated more than 600 wounded and injured people since the start of January, of which around half were civilians. A large number of these civilians were women and children.

In recent weeks, the armed conflict between the M23/AFC and the Congolese army, backed by their allies, has flared up again in the province of North Kivu and spread to the neighbouring province of South Kivu.

The Democratic Republic of Congo’s government says the Rwanda-backed rebels’ advance constitutes a “declaration of war."

The assassination of Major General Peter Cirimwami marks a critical escalation in the conflict in DRC, amid a geopolitical scramble for the country's vast mineral wealth.

Goma, Congo — Residents in eastern Congo’s largest city, Goma, were fleeing on Monday after Rwanda-backed rebels claimed to have captured the regional hub from Congolese forces as fighting escalated despite calls from the U.N. Security Council for the insurgents to withdraw.

The M23 group is one of about 100 armed factions vying for a foothold in eastern Congo in one of Africa’s longest wars, which has displaced 4.5 million people.

The M23 rebels in eastern DR Congo have said they will march on Goma, the capital of North Kivu province, on Monday, January 27, if government forces (FARDC) do not lay down their weapons.

The governor of eastern Congo’s North Kivu province has died from injuries ... Banchereau reported from Dakar, Senegal. Associated Press writer Christina Malkia in Kinshasa, Congo, contributed ...