
-
Indian army says new exchange of gunfire with Pakistan
-
Epstein accuser Virginia Giuffre takes own life in Australia: family
-
Hundreds of buildings damaged, dozens injured in 6.3 Ecuador quake
-
India and Pakistan's Kashmir fallout hits economy too
-
Francis's funeral to be grand farewell to 'pope of the poor'
-
Pogacar faces defiant Evenepoel at Liege-Bastogne-Liege
-
Chelsea eye great escape against Barcelona in Women's Champions League
-
Iran, US to hold new round of high-level nuclear talks
-
'Energy and effort' pay off for Reds as Blues' woes continue
-
Albatross and closing birdie lift China's Liu to LPGA Chevron lead
-
On the horizon? Wave of momentum for high seas treaty
-
Developing countries should fast-track US trade deals: World Bank president
-
Grizzlies' Morant 'doubtful' for must-win game 4 v Thunder
-
Trump in Rome for pope funeral in first foreign trip of new term
-
Trump says Russia-Ukraine deal 'very close' after new Kremlin talks
-
US rookies lead PGA pairs event with McIlroy and Lowry in hunt
-
Trump tariff promises get a reality check
-
Warriors coach Kerr 'relatively optimistic' injured Butler will play game 3
-
Postecoglou hopes 'Stonecutter's Credo' can inspire Spurs
-
PSG lose unbeaten Ligue 1 record ahead of Arsenal showdown
-
Venezuela accuses El Salvador president of 'human trafficking'
-
Own goal takes Sundowns to African final against Pyramids
-
Scores of buildings damaged, 20 injured in Ecuador quake
-
US stocks extend rally as market eyes busy calendar next week
-
Pope's death triggers surge of disinformation he fought against
-
Rovanpera takes control of Rally Islas Canarias
-
Zelensky insists Crimea is Ukrainian as US envoy meets Putin
-
Patel and Mendis help Sunrisers beat Kings in Dhoni's 400th T20
-
Copa del Rey ref statements 'unacceptable': Real Madrid after boycotting final build-up
-
Insurance CEO's accused killer pleads not guilty to federal murder charges
-
FBI arrests Wisconsin judge for shielding undocumented migrant
-
Brazil ex-president Collor de Mello jailed for corruption
-
Zelensky insists Crimea 'belongs' to Ukraine as US envoy meets Putin
-
Real Madrid boycott Copa del Rey build-up over referee complaints
-
Trinidad and Tobago votes for parliament, PM, with opposition in lead
-
IMF chief hails 'constructive' Spring Meetings held under tariff uncertainty
-
Iran FM Araghchi in Oman ahead of nuclear talks with US
-
Dozens of buildings destroyed, 20 injured in Ecuador quake
-
Young Barca must 'enjoy' Real Madrid Copa final fight: Flick
-
Pakistan and India border closure separates families
-
Brazil's Bolsonaro 'stable' after post-surgery setback
-
Catholics in secular Cuba hail Francis as 'bridge'
-
US envoy Witkoff, Putin discuss 'possibility' of direct Russia-Ukraine talks
-
Community seeks answers after French school knife killing
-
German prosecutors seek jail terms in VW 'dieselgate' trial
-
Sabalenka makes winning start at Madrid Open
-
EU, US should de-escalate and negotiate trade deal: IMF Europe director
-
Russia accuses Ukraine of killing general in car bombing
-
Emery wants FA Cup glory and Champions League berth for Villa
-
Buildings destroyed, one injured in Ecuador quake

Intense combat edges toward key DRC city as UN plans urgent meeting
Intense combat between Congolese forces and Rwandan-backed fighters on Sunday edged closer to the major city of Goma in eastern Democratic republic of Congo as the UN Security Council prepared an emergency meeting.
The resource-rich eastern provinces of North and South Kivu have been plagued by conflicts for three decades, with the M23 emerging as one of the most powerful armed groups in recent years.
M23 has seized vast swathes of the east of the DRC since 2021, displacing thousands and triggering a humanitarian crisis.
After peace talks between Rwandan President Paul Kagame and DRC's Felix Tshisekedi were cancelled in mid-December, M23 fighters backed by several thousand Rwandan troops quickly advanced towards Goma, the capital of North Kivu and a key city that is home to more than a million people.
In the city center, heavy detonations have been echoing since dawn on Sunday, according to AFP correspondents in Goma.
Combat helicopters of the Congolese army circled in the sky. Cars and motorbikes were still circulating, but most businesses were closed. As the fighting draws closer, new columns of displaced people have arrived in the city.
On Saturday, three countries -- South Africa, Malawi and Uruguay -- announced the deaths of a total of 13 soldiers serving as peacekeepers in the conflict zone, where the UN forces, known as MONUSCO, and a southern regional peacekeeping force called SAMIDRC, have been supporting DRC's military.
The escalation in fighting prompted an emergency UN Security Council meeting, originally set for Monday, to be moved forwards to Sunday.
Congolese army spokesman General Sylvain Ekenge told journalists that his country's armed forces were working to "push back the enemy".
"Rwanda is determined to seize the city of Goma," he said.
The DRC announced it was pulling its diplomats from Kigali in a letter to Rwanda's embassy in Kinshasa.
Urging the fighters to halt their advance, the European Union's foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said "Rwanda must cease its support for the M23 and withdraw".
"The EU strongly condemns Rwanda's military presence in the DRC as a clear violation of international law, the UN charter and the territorial integrity of the DRC," she said.
The African Union and French President Emmanuel Macron -- who spoke in separate telephone calls with both Kagame and Tshisekedi -- also added their voices to demands for an immediate halt to the fighting.
The city was briefly occupied at the end of 2012 by the M23 ("March 23 Movement"), but the group withdrew after a deal. It was militarily defeated by DRC forces and the UN in 2013 but regrouped several years later.
Half a dozen ceasefires and truces have already been declared and broken in the region. The last ceasefire was signed at the end of July.
- 'Active combat' -
An AFP reporter on Saturday saw a burned-out, smoking armoured vehicle of the UN peacekeeping force MONUSCO on the road between Goma and Sake, scene of intense fighting in recent days.
South Africa's defence ministry on Saturday said that the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) had "lost nine members by Friday".
Seven of the dead were serving in the SAMIDRC regional force sent by the Southern African Development Community (SADC), and two were UN peacekeepers, it said.
A Malawian army spokesman said three of its soldiers with the SADC force also died during clashes, while Uruguay's military announced that one of its members serving with the UN peacekeepers had been killed and four others wounded.
Some 15,000 peacekeepers are in the DRC.
MONUSCO or the United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo, said its Quick Reaction Forces had "been actively engaged in intense combat" with its heavy artillery firing against M23 positions.
- 'Harmful consequences' -
Since the beginning of January, about 400,000 people have been forced to flee the fighting, according to the UN.
The UN has begun evacuating "non-essential" staff from Goma to neighbouring Uganda and to the Congolese capital Kinshasa.
Britain, the United States Germany and France also have already asked their citizens to leave.
Angolan President Joao Lourenco, the African Union's mediator between Rwanda and the DRC, denounced "irresponsible actions by the M23 and its supporters".
In December, a planned meeting between Tshisekedi and Kagame as part of an Angola-led peace process was cancelled due to a lack of agreement.
On Saturday, Rwandan government spokeswoman Yolande Makolo said on social media platform X that "dialogue between the DRC government and the rebels from an aggrieved Congolese community that has been victim of systematic persecution is the only way to resolve this conflict".
O.Johnson--AMWN