Residents of the besieged city of Goma, in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, say they are gripped by fear as gunshots continue to ring out around their homes, days after rebel forces claimed they had taken over.

After a lightning offensive, M23 rebels now control Goma, a large city in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

By Yassin Kombi and Sonia Rolley GOMA, Democratic Republic of Congo (Reuters) -Rebels seized the airport of east Congo's largest city Goma on Tuesday, potentially cutting off the main route for aid to reach hundreds of thousands of displaced people,

Our peacekeepers are also planning on sending out patrols today in Goma to assess the situation, to conduct resupplies and assess routes in the capital,' says spokesman - Anadolu Ajansı

Bodies are lying on the streets. Medical staff in overwhelmed hospitals are treating hundreds of wounded civilians against the backdrop of gunfire and mortar fire.

A rebel alliance spearheaded by the ethnic Tutsi-led M23 militia said it had seized the lakeside city of more than 2 million people.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio called for a urgent cease-fire in the conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo saying Washington was "deeply troubled" by a recent escalation in the fighting.

GOMA, Democratic Republic of Congo (Reuters) - Rwandan-backed M23 rebels in Democratic Republic of Congo were moving south on Wednesday towards Bukavu, the capital of South Kivu province, apparently bidding to expand their area of control in the country's east after capturing the city of Goma.

M23 plans to govern the city of Goma - a key gateway to rich mining areas that produce valuable resources like gold, tin, and coltan - giving the armed group access to trade routes and economic power

The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, condemned the serious violations of human rights, the attacks on displaced persons, and the increase in ethnic violence. Goma's hospitals are overwhelmed,

The Rwanda Defense Force reported escorting hundreds of "Romanian mercenaries" out of the Democratic Republic of the Congo after seizing Goma.