Two hundred thousand people have fled their homes in eastern Congo in recent days, the United Nations said, as Rwanda-backed rebels march on a strategic town just days after Donald Trump hosted the Rwandan and Congolese leaders to proclaim peace.
In a statement released late on Monday, the U.N. said at least 74 people had been killed, mostly civilians, and 83 admitted to hospital with wounds from escalating clashes in the area in recent days.
Local officials and residents said the Rwanda-backed M23 group has been advancing towards the lakeside town of Uvira on the border with Burundi, and battling with Congolese troops and local groups known as Wazalendo in villages north of the town.
These attacks come shortly after a peace deal which was hosted by U.S President Trump for the presidents of Rwanda and Congo in Washington on Thursday for a ceremony to sign a pact affirming U.S. and Qatari-brokered commitments to end the war.
“Today we’re succeeding where so many others have failed,” Trump said, claiming his administration had ended a 30-year conflict that had led to the deaths of millions.
Latest reports indicate that the rebels had captured Luvungi, a town that had stood as the front line since February, and that fierce fighting was underway near Sange and Kiliba, villages further along the road towards Uvira from the north.
