February 06, 2025 The rebels of the March 23 Movement (M23) have called on the population of Goma, located in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, to rally at the Unity Stadium, following the appointment of Joseph Bahati Musanga as the new governor of the province of North Kivu.

Now is the time to end the crisis in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the UN Secretary-General said on Thursday in a briefing to journalists in New York. António Guterres made the “special appeal for peace” ahead of two major meetings to address the Rwandan-backed M23 rebel group’s brutal offensive across the region.

Rebels occupying the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo city of Goma have declared a cease-fire but the government dismissed the pause in the fighting as a ruse aimed to head off growing international concern.

Bodies are decomposing on the streets of Goma that have not yet been collected, with hundreds of thousands displaced in the region after fighting between Rwanda-backed rebels and Congolese forces.

Rwandan-backed M23 rebels in Democratic Republic of Congo are seeking to advance south towards Bukavu, the capital of South Kivu province, in an attempt to expand their area of control in the country's east after capturing the city of Goma.