GOMA, Congo (AP) — Panic spread in eastern Congo's main city on Thursday, with M23 rebels steadily inching closer to Goma and seizing a nearby town as they battle the Congolese army. Bombs were heard going off in the city's distant outskirts and hundreds of wounded civilians were brought in to the main hospital from the area of the fighting.

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.

In eastern Congo, panic grips Goma as M23 rebels advance, capturing nearby towns. Goma, a key regional hub, faces heightened conflict, displacing over 7 million. Accusations against Rwanda for backing M23 persist as international bodies urge restraint.

The M23 armed group has seized further territory in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo and on Thursday was continuing to tighten its grip on provincial capital Goma, which is almost surrounded by fighting.

Laden with just the possessions they can carry, thousands of displaced people have reached the outskirts of the city of Goma in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, fleeing a rapid M23 rebel advance that has taken more territory than ever before.

Congolese helicopter gunships swooped low over the plains to fire volleys of rockets and troops trucked towards the front line to halt Rwanda-backed fighters advancing on DR Congo's eastern provincial capital after capturing a string of towns.

Tutsi-led M23 rebel group claims to defend Tutsi interests against ethnic Hutu militias whose leaders are linked to genocide of Tutsi in Rwanda - Anadolu Ajansı

Rwanda-backed M23 rebels in the Democratic Republic of Congo have taken over the key eastern trading town of Minova, according to various sources. The fall of the city puts the rebels within 40km (25 miles) of provincial capital, Goma, which lies close to the border with Rwanda.

The M23 rebels in the Democratic Republic of Congo have taken over the town of Minova, threatening Goma. The conflict has displaced 484,000 people, with Congo and the UN accusing Rwanda of supporting the rebels.

GOMA, Congo — Several towns that fell to armed ... territory in the vast and mineral-rich region near the border with Rwanda. The conflict has created one of the world’s largest humanitarian ...

The Congolese army says several towns that fell to armed groups in the eastern North Kivu and South Kivu provinces have been recaptured by government forces GOMA, Congo -- Several towns that fell ...

NZULO, Congo -- The M23 rebel group's advance toward eastern Congo's largest city has displaced over 178,000 people in the past two weeks, the United Nations said, as the fighters closed in on Goma on the border with Rwanda.