GOMA, Democratic Republic of Congo (Reuters) – The United States, France and Britain pressed Rwanda on Sunday over its support for the rebels who are closing in on the rebels in eastern Congo, as government forces tried to stop an attack that has forced thousands of people to flee. run away.
While fighters from the M23 rebel group appear poised to enter the city of Goma, the UN Security Council met early Sunday morning to discuss the fighting, in which three UN soldiers have been killed in the past two days.
Rebels have made rapid advances this month in the Democratic Republic of Congo's mineral-rich but conflict-ridden eastern border, raising fears the fighting could spiral into regional war.
Rwanda denies accusations by the UN and others that it supports M23.
“The M23 attack on peacekeepers supported by the RDF must stop immediately,” James Kariuki, Britain's deputy permanent representative to the UN, told the council meeting, using the Rwandan army's acronym.
In addition to the three UN peacekeepers – two from South Africa and one from Uruguay – an additional seven South African and three from Malawi serving on separate missions in Southern Africa were also killed this week, South African and UN officials said.
Condemning the “hostility of Rwanda and M23 in Goma”, acting US Ambassador to the UN Dorothy Shea called for an end to the war.
“The United States will consider all the tools at its disposal to hold accountable those responsible for maintaining war, instability and insecurity,” he said.
France's UN ambassador has asked Rwanda to withdraw its troops from Congolese territory.
Rwanda regrets the dire situation in eastern Congo, UN Ambassador Ernest Rwamucyo told the council, adding that “the current crisis could have been avoided if the government (of Congo) had shown a real commitment to peace”.
Three years into their rebellion, M23 rebels now control more of the Congo region than ever before and have vowed to capture Goma, the capital of North Kivu province and home to about 1 million people.
Gunfire and gunfire erupted on the outskirts of the city on Sunday, residents said.
By afternoon, the rebels were closing in on Goma's airport, two government soldiers said. However, a Congolese government spokesman told national television that the army contained the attack.
As the night wore on, the electricity went out in the city, many residents of Goma said.
FEAR OF HUMANITY PROBLEM
Speaking to the Security Council via video link, the head of the UN mission in Congo Bintou Keita said M23 and Rwandan forces had entered the outskirts of the city.
“The roads are closed and the airport can no longer be used for evacuation or relief efforts. UM23 has declared the airspace over Goma closed,” he said.
“In other words, we're stuck.”
Eastern Congo remains a small enclave of rebels and militias after two successive regional wars since the 1994 Rwandan genocide.
The well-trained and formally armed M23, the latest in a long line of Tutsi-led rebel organizations – says it exists to protect Congo's Tutsi population.
The Congolese government, however, says the rebels are supporters of Kigali's plans to expand into the region, a charge the Rwandan government has long denied.
Congo severed all diplomatic ties with Rwanda within a week of the uprising.
The Congolese army said on Saturday that Rwandan attackers were responsible for killing the governor of the North Kivu army on the front line the day before.
A spokesperson for the Rwandan government did not respond to his request.
Aid agencies are worried about the impact of the conflict on the population, warning that the fighting will deepen what is already one of the worst problems in the world.
Civilians have fled several fighting areas since the latest M23 offensive began near Goma on Jan. 23, the UN humanitarian coordinator's office said in a statement.
“Several areas outside Goma, sheltering over 300,000 people, were destroyed within hours,” the report said.
The escalation of violence has forced the World Food Program to temporarily suspend emergency operations, the agency said on Sunday.