Civilians flee as fighting between M23 and DRC army approaches Goma

GOMA, DR Congo

Civilians have been fleeing the Nzulo camp for displaced people outside Goma in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo as fighting between M23 rebels and the Congolese army approaches the provincial capital.

The camp is filled with internally displaced people who have already fled at least once in the decades-long conflict that has created one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises.

But amid an uptick in fighting between the Congolese army and Rwandan-backed M23 rebels, they believe it is no longer safe to stay.

David Kasereka fled on a motorbike on Wednesday with a young child, barely stopping to explain that he was leaving because they noticed the rebels had taken the nearby Ngwiro hill.

“We are fleeing, but we don’t know where we are going because everywhere, the bombs are following us. They are already close to here, and we expect to receive a lot of bullets. That is why we decided to leave the camp,” he said.

Nadège Bauma, like many others in Nzulo, was first displaced due to intense fighting in Sake.

On Wednesday, this mother of six gathered what she could of her belongings and piled them into a minibus so that she and her family could flee again.

“We just learned that the M23 have arrived in Ngwiro, and we decided to leave the area because bullets and bombs are falling. We are afraid,” she said.

Congolese authorities said Tuesday that M23 has seized the town of Minova, a key supply route for Goma just 40 kilometres away.

They have also reportedly captured several mining towns in the region.

The United Nations on Monday said more than 237,000 people have been forced from their homes in the mineral-rich region since the start of the year.

Rights group Amnesty International earlier this week called on the warring parties to stop using explosive weapons in densely populated areas.

The M23, or the March 23 Movement, is a militant group composed of ethnic Tutsis who broke away from the Congolese army just over a decade ago.

Rwanda denies accusation by the DRC and the United Nations that it supports the group with troops and weapons.

M23 is one of about 100 armed groups that have been vying for a foothold in mineral-rich eastern Congo since 1998 when the conflict began.

More than 7 million people have been displaced.

Numerous diplomatic initiatives by neighbouring countries and others to resolve the conflicts have failed.