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,

Many Congolese see the rebel advance as an invasion of their country by a foreign power in an attempt to seize land and Congo’s valuable rare minerals.

M23 rebels are steadily encircling Goma, the DRC's strategic eastern city, as the national army struggles to defend its territory. With alleged support from Rwanda and facing a weakened Congolese military,