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Message: [QUOTE="Nehanda, post: 30608, member: 2262"] M23 rebels just took over the town of Minembwe in South Kivu after fierce battles, spreading their control beyond North Kivu where they usually operate. Local reports confirm that Minembwe fell after weeks of fighting between M23 and several opposing forces. Burundian troops and other allied fighters supporting the Congo government had to pull back from the area. This capture shows M23 growing stronger and reaching farther into eastern Congo. Minembwe sits high in the Hauts Plateaux region of Fizi and has long been a place where different ethnic groups clash. M23 taking control here could make things worse between armed groups and countries near South Kivu and Burundi. At the same time, new fighting broke out near Walikale town in North Kivu, where M23 again fought against the Congolese army and local militia forces. These attacks happened shortly after M23 went back on its promise to leave Walikale. The United Nations Security Council had just passed Resolution 2773, calling for an immediate stop to fighting and for Rwandan forces to leave Congo. Countries across Africa and around the world are worried about these latest events, especially since they come right after a major deal between the Southern African Development Community and M23. That agreement had SADC forces leaving Goma because M23 had cut off their supplies by taking the city and its airport. Many Western countries blame Rwanda for helping M23, though Rwanda says this isn't true. M23 stands for March 23 Movement, named after a failed peace deal from March 23, 2009. The group first formed when Congolese army officers rebelled in 2012. They briefly held Goma that year before being beaten and pushed into Uganda and Rwanda. They came back in late 2021 and have been steadily taking territory across North Kivu, creating a path of control from Rutshuru to Masisi and extending into Walikale and South Kivu. Their return has made tensions worse between countries in the area. The fighting has created a terrible humanitarian crisis with more than 7 million people forced from their homes across Congo - the highest number of displaced people anywhere in Africa. The spread of fighting into Minembwe threatens to make things even less stable and harder for aid groups to help people who need it. Peace talks have stalled, ceasefires keep getting broken, and alliances between countries keep changing, making the situation in eastern Congo worse every day. M23 taking Minembwe shows they can still expand despite international pressure, suggesting the conflict is getting more dangerous rather than winding down. [/QUOTE]

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