Schools and businesses in Rubavu town were ordered to close temporarily and students were sent home as heavy fighting erupted across the border in Goma, DR Congo.
The intense fighting, which began over the weekend and continued into the afternoon of Monday, January 27, forced businesses to temporarily close as elements of the FARDC forces and the genocidal FDLR militia shelled into Rwanda.
The development came hours after the M23 rebel group announced it had seized Goma with many government troops handing down arms in the wee hours of Monday, some even crossing into Rwanda for safety.
The borders remain open and many people, including UN staff and their families, have since fled to Rwanda.
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According to Rwanda Defence Force Spokesperson Brig. Gen. Ronald Rwivanga, several bombs were fired into Rubavu District by the Congolese army, with support from the genocidal FDLR elements operating in Goma.
In Rubavu town, shops, restaurants, and hospitality services were disrupted as residents sought safety.
Justin Nzabonimpa, one of the few taxi drivers still operating, described the chaotic scenes: "The situation is volatile. Some people are fleeing to Musanze, Rutsiro, and other areas."
"We are doing our best to assist those stranded and respond to emergency situations."
Students at the University of Tourism, Technology, and Business Studies (UTB) in Rubavu were sent home after bullets struck their campus.
Secondary school students were also seen going home.
"We are waiting for motorcycles to take us home in Busasamana Sector," said Yvonne Dushimimana, a student at Gisenyi Adventist Secondary School (GASS).
The conflict escalated last week after the rebels captured a string of cities and localities, followed by the killing of North Kivu’s Military Governor Peter Cirimwami.
The government coalition has since suffered more losses, including the deaths of the FDLR top commander ‘Maj Gen’ Pacifique Ntawunguka, alias Omega, and many members of the government coalition, including the UN-sanctioned FDLR terrorist group set up by extremists linked to the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, which claimed the lives of more than a million people.
In recent weeks, the M23 captured the towns of Minova, in South Kivu, and Masisi, in North Kivu, ahead of taking the city of Goma last night.
The rebels demand direct peace talks with the Congolese government, which has ruled out any possibility of talks with the rebels, calling them a terrorist movement. Regional initiatives have failed to end the war politically, with the Congolese government pursuing a military solution.