Rebels seized control of two major towns in eastern Congo and doubled the territory they hold after fierce fighting Saturday with the Congolese military, authorities said.
Congo's government later ordered the Rwandan ambassador, Vincent Karega, to leave the country within 48 hours, reacting to M23 rebels seizing both Kiwanja and Rutshuru Centre near their shared border.
Fierce fighting erupted Saturday morning between the Congolese army and M23 rebels in Kiwanja, which is 70 kilometres from the regional capital, Goma. Daniel Subuka, a Kiwanja resident contacted by telephone by AP, said he saw well-armed M23 rebels making their way into Kiwanja and others heading toward Rutshuru Centre.
MONUSCO "warns that it stands ready to retaliate vigorously in the event of further aggression against its bases," the statement said, detailing that two of the wounded peacekeepers had been hit by mortar fire. Nearly 200,000 people already had been displaced over the past year even before the latest surge in violence, which is now blamed for forcing at least 40,000 people to flee in only a week's time.