More than 20000 Congolese have reportedly fled to neighbouring Bujumbura in Burundi following intensified fighting between AFC/M23 rebels and government forces.
Uvira city in South Kivu province, still under the control of the Kinshasa government is threatened by the advancing battle hardened AFC/M23 rebels.
The rebels already control Bukavu city, a major commercial and administrative hub.
The rebel movement continues to push forward, aiming to reach the city of Uvira, which has been under the control of the Kinshasa government and is the capital of South Kivu province since the rebel movement occupied the city of Bukavu.
However, Kinshasa and the AFC/M23, had signed a framework agreement intended to pave the way for new discussions on the “root causes” of the conflict, with a view to signing a long-awaited comprehensive peace agreement for a return to normalcy in the North and South Kivu provinces.
Several documents initialed by the two rivals, including the prisoner exchange mechanism, the ceasefire verification mechanism, and others, have not yet been implemented despite numerous meetings with the mediator.
