President Paul Kagame of Rwanda has urged Congolese authorities to negotiate with a violent rebel group that has seized key towns in eastern Congo in recent days, widening its control over the region which borders Rwanda.

Movement, aka M23, reportedly supported by Rwanda, captured the strategic town of Masisi in the Democratic Republic of Congo's North Kivu province from the army and pro-government militias on Saturday.

The town of Masisi is in a rich, mountainous location that provides access to the provincial capital of Goma. M23 rebel fighters in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) have taken control of a strategic town in the east of the Central African country, local politicians say, adding to the armed group’s recent gains in the region.

The M23 rebels, reportedly backed by Rwanda, have captured Masisi, a strategic town near Goma in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The renewed insurgency since 2022 has escalated tensions, with Congolese and Rwandan relations strained.

The Rwanda-backed M23 rebels have seized Masisi, a strategic town in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), escalating their recent territorial gains. Masisi, located 80km from Goma, serves as an administrative hub for a resource-rich region.

Goma, a strategic entry point into the Congolese interior. Kagame told reporters in the Rwandan capital of Kigali that failure to talk directly to M23 rebels means an unwillingness to find a ...