Nearly three thousand people have been killed in the city of Goma in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, according to the United Nations, after the provincial capital was captured by rebels following days of fierce fighting with the Congolese army.

The rebels continued advances in eastern Congo despite their own announcement of a cease-fire. The U.N. secretary-general called for them to lay down their guns and agree to mediation.

The M23 rebel group have captured the city of Goma in the eastern DRC in a major escalation of a drawn-out conflict.

The fragile ceasefire in eastern DR Congo is on the verge of collapse as Rwandan-backed M23 rebels reportedly seize control of Nyabibwe town in South Kivu province. The mining town, a key commercial hub between Goma and Bukavu,

Goma remains “under occupation” by Congo’s M23 rebels and the ceasefire they announced has been broken as their forces engage in heavy fighting along the main route to South Kivu’s main city Bukavu.

Rwandan-backed M23 rebels have seized control of a mining town in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo's South Kivu province, eight sources said on Wednesday, in an apparent violation of a unilateral ceasefire they declared this week.