By Yassin Kombi and David Lewis GOMA, Democratic Republic of Congo (Reuters) -As an East African bloc urged an immediate ceasefire in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwandan-backed M23 rebels who seized the city of Goma extended their advance on Wednesday,

Advances being made by the M23 rebel group in the Democratic Republic of Congo are "heightening the threat of a regional war," according to U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres.

Angolan President Joao Lourenco has urged warring parties in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to return to peace talks, which collapsed last year, the foreign ministry said.

A conflict that has raged for decades reached a flashpoint this week when rebels backed by Rwanda marched on a key Congolese city in a bid to occupy territory and exploit minerals.

The latest fighting has heightened an already dire humanitarian crisis in the region, forcing half a million people from their homes since the start of the year.

President Paul Kagame says Rwanda was ready for 'confrontation' as he rejected criticism over his backing for M23 rebels who were pushing south in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo

The scene is the result of the invasion of Goma on January 27th by M23, an armed group under the control of Rwanda, Congo’s neighbour, which abuts the city. Paul Kagame, Rwanda’s president, has escalated a crisis whose origins go back decades.

Violent protests erupt in the Democratic Republic of Congo's capital, as demonstrators target multiple foreign embassies, including the Dutch mission, amid escalating regional tensions over alleged foreign interference.

The Rwanda-backed armed group M23 vowed on Thursday to march on the DR Congo capital, Kinshasa, as its fighters made further advances in the mineral-rich east of the country.

On Jan. 30, Microsoft showed off the latest Surface for Business Copilot+ PCs, Surface Laptop 7 and Surface Pro 11. Both will be on store shelves Feb. 18. Just a day earlier, the company announced all users of the Microsoft Copilot AI assistant will be able to toggle on OpenAI’s o1 model for slower, more “thoughtful” responses.

President Kagame tore into South Africa’s president, Cyril Ramaphosa, warning that South African troops had no place in the eastern DR Congo battlefield