Rwanda-backed rebels claimed they captured eastern Congo’s largest city, Goma, early Monday, as the United Nations described a mass panic among its 2 million people and Congo’s government said the rebel advance was a “declaration of war.

M23 insurgency in eastern Congo has intensified in January with the rebels seizing control of more territory than ever before, prompting the United Nations to warn of the risk of a broader regional war.

People displaced by the fighting with M23 rebels make their way to the center of Goma, Democratic Republic of the Congo on Jan 26. (AP)