The insecurity has deepened a dire humanitarian situation with 400,000 more people forced to flee their homes this year, according to the United Nations refugee agency.

Fighting has escalated sharply in recent weeks in eastern Congo, where rebels have seized key towns and are closing in on the city of Goma, the government’s last stronghold in the North Kivu province,

Three South African UN peacekeepers were killed fighting the M23 rebels in eastern Congo. Recent advances by M23 near Goma have escalated tensions, prompting the UN to temporarily relocate staff. The unrest highlights one of the world's major humanitarian crises in the mineral-rich region.

An emergency meeting of the UN Security Council originally set for Monday, has been moved up to Sunday due to an escalation in the fighting.

Congolese troops pushed back an attempted overnight advance by Rwanda-backed rebels on the eastern city of Goma, two Congolese army sources said on Saturday, after the sound of nearby heavy bombardment rocked the city in the early hours.

Rebels from the Rwanda-backed M23 group have reportedly killed North Kivu Governor, Peter Cirimwami as fighting intensifies in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. The governor was fatally injured on Thursday while visiting the frontline,

Authorities say the governor of eastern Congo’s North-Kivu province has died from injuries sustained on the front line as M23 rebels close in on Goma