By Frank Kamuntu
There was an explosion at the airport in the volatile eastern city of Goma in the Democratic Republic of Congo on Saturday morning, Swift News has learnt.
The incident took place amidst escalating clashes between rebel groups and government forces near the strategically important town of Sake, located approximately 20 kilometres (12 miles) away from Goma, local media quoted security and government sources to have revealed.
The M23 rebel group, which the Kinshasa government claims is supported by Rwanda, is involved in the ongoing conflict with Congolese government forces.
“Yes, it’s true, Goma airport was hit by a bomb last night,” a source in the governorate of North Kivu province told reporters, but pleaded not to be named.
Also, a security source reportedly spoke of “two bombs” at the facility in Goma, the North Kivu capital and home to one million people, adding that they “caused no damage”.
“Two experts are on site to check where the bombs were fired from,” the source said.
The UN Security Council has expressed its concern this week over the “escalating violence” in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, denouncing an offensive by the predominantly Tutsi M23 rebels near Goma.
Swift News understands that DR Congo, along with the UN and Western nations, has accused Rwanda of backing the rebels in an attempt to gain control over the region’s abundant mineral resources, an accusation that Kigali has refuted.
Over the past two years, the rebels have seized large portions of North Kivu.
The recent clashes have forced tens of thousands of civilians to flee towards Goma, a city situated between Lake Kivu and the Rwandan border, effectively isolated from the country’s interior.
As per a confidential UN report obtained by AFP earlier this week, the Rwandan military is reportedly utilizing advanced weaponry like surface-to-air missiles to assist the M23 rebels.
According to the report, a mobile surface-to-air missile (SAM) suspected to be from the Rwandan Defence Force (RDF) was fired at a UN observation drone last Wednesday, but fortunately, it missed its target.
Despite the presence of UN forces in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) for almost 25 years, they have been accused of not effectively safeguarding civilians from armed groups.
In December, the UN Security Council voted to comply with Kinshasa’s request for a withdrawal, despite the volatile situation in the region. Despite numerous diplomatic efforts, the violence in the Congo continues unabated.
African leaders, who gathered for a summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, discussed the DRC situation on the sidelines late Friday and were scheduled to reconvene on Saturday.
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