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M23 rebels captured the town of Masisi on Monday, leading to a
mass exodus of people in the face of a new offensive by the
rebel group that saw them take over two strategic towns in the
east of the country in less than a week.
The newly displaced people add to the 2.8 million already
displaced in the province of North Kivu, more than a third of
the province's population, according to the U.N.
M23, or the March 23 Movement, is a militant group composed of
ethnic Tutsis who broke away from the Congolese army just over a
decade ago. The group rose to prominence in 2012 when its
fighters seized Goma, eastern Congo’s largest city on the border
with Rwanda.
M23 is one of more than 100 armed groups that have been vying
for territory in mineral-rich eastern Congo near the border with
Rwanda, in a conflict that has created one of the world’s
largest humanitarian crises. All told, more than 7 million
people have been displaced.
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