With international pressure mounting for an end to the battle for Goma, Kenya announced on Sunday that DR Congo’s President Felix Tshisekedi and Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame had agreed to attend a summit in the next two days.
By midnight, Goma had fallen quiet though it was still unclear whether the M23 had advanced far into the city.
Accusing Rwanda of issuing a “declaration of war” by sending more troops over the border, the DRC called for the United Nations to impose sanctions on its neighbour for helping the M23.
Around a dozen foreign peacekeepers have been killed in the escalating clashes, and UN chief Antonio Guterres on Sunday called on Kigali to pull its armed forces out of the country -- a call rejected by Rwanda.
But Kenyan President William Ruto later on Sunday announced a summit of the East African Community regional bloc with the leaders of Rwanda and the DR Congo for talks over the crisis.
A ‘frontal assault’
“This is a frontal assault, a declaration of war that no longer hides behind diplomatic artifice,“ said Congolese Foreign Minister Therese Kayikwamba Wagner.
Kayikwamba Wagner urged the UN Security Council -- the only UN institution with the power to impose binding resolutions on members -- to seek targeted sanctions on Rwandan officials.
“This fighting close to the Rwandan border continues to present a serious threat to Rwanda’s security and territorial integrity, and necessitates Rwanda’s sustained defensive posture,“ said the statement.
Both the DRC and Rwanda have withdrawn their diplomats from each other’s capitals in a breakdown of relations.
Ahead of the emergency meeting Guterres urged Rwanda “to cease support to the M23 and withdraw from DRC territory”, according to a statement by the UN chief’s spokesman.
But a UN experts’ report said Kigali was using the M23 to secure access to the DRC’s mineral wealth, exporting it abroad for its own gain. It said around 3,000 to 4,000 Rwandan troops were backing the M23.
Goma was briefly occupied at the end of 2012 by the M23, or March 23 Movement, but the group withdrew after a deal.
Half a dozen ceasefires and truces have already been declared and broken in the region. The last ceasefire was signed at the end of July.
Nine of the victims were from South Africa, another three were Malawian and the last one was from Uruguay.
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