Panic spread in Goma, the capital of DR Congo's North Kivu Province, on Thursday, January 23, with M23 rebels reportedly planning to march on the key city after recently gaining more ground against the Congolese army. Bombs were heard going off in the distant outskirts and there were reports of people fleeing the city. ALSO READ: M23 rebels capture key South Kivu town of Minova The rebel group has been making significant advances in recent weeks, closing in on Goma, which is home to around 2 million people. The war between a government coalition and the M23 has been going on since 2021. In recent weeks, the M23 captured the towns of Minova, Katale and Masisi. The rebels say they are fighting against genocidal violence against Congolese Tutsi communities at the hands of the government forces and militias like the FDLR and Mai Mai. “The people of Goma have suffered greatly, like other Congolese,” an M23 spokesperson, Lawrence Kanyuka, said on X on Thursday. “M23 is on its way to liberate them, and they must prepare to welcome this liberation.” ALSO READ: Who are theM23 rebels in DR Congo? M23 seized Goma in 2012 and controlled it for over a week, before its fighters were defeated and fled, only to resurface in late 2021. As news of fighting spread, schools in Goma sent students home on Thursday morning, the Associated Press reported. “We are told that the enemy wants to enter the city. That’s why we are told to go home,” Hassan Kambale, a 19-year-old high school student, was quoted by AP as saying. “We are constantly waiting for the bombs.”
