M23 rebels have captured the town of Walikale in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, according to media reports citing local and security sources.
The rebels took over the mining hub in North Kivu province on Wednesday “almost without a fight”, Radio Okapi, the United Nations radio service in the DRC, reported.
“Walikale-centre is occupied by the M23 … We retreated to avoid human losses,” one officer in the DR Congo’s military (FARDC) told AFP, saying its forces were now about 30km (19 miles) away in Mubi.
Fiston Misona, a civil society activist in Walikale, told the Reuters news agency: “The rebels are now visible in the centre of the city. There are at least seven people wounded who are at the general hospital.”
An M23 source told Reuters the rebels were in full control of Walikale. The FARDC did not immediately respond about the situation on the ground.
The seizure of Walikale marks the farthest west the group has advanced into the DRC’s interior since it first emerged in 2012.
The developments come a day after Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi and his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame, called for an immediate ceasefire and an unconditional cessation of hostilities during talks in Doha, Qatar.
By taking control of Walikale, the M23 rebels seized a road linking four provinces in the east of the country: North Kivu, South Kivu, Tshopo and Maniema, cutting off Congolese army's positions.
Walikale area is home to the largest tin deposits in DR Congo and to several significant gold mines.
The Bisie tin mine there, operated by Canadian-South African company Alphamin Resources, accounts for the majority of tin exports from North Kivu province.
The town of about 15,000 people sits about 125km northwest of eastern DR Congo’s largest city, Goma, which the M23 rebels seized in January. It puts them within 400km of Kisangani, DR Congo’s fourth-biggest city.
Al Jazeera’s Alain Uaykani, reporting from Goma, said residents of Walikale confirmed the presence of M23 in the town.
“Thousands of people are already on the road, as a majority of people are trying to take the road towards the neighbouring province of Kisangani, where they can seek shelter,” Uaykani said.
Earlier this month, M23 captured Nyabiondo city, 110km northwest of Goma, after days of fierce fighting with government forces and pro-government militias. In February, it captured Bukavu, the capital of South Kivu province.
The offensive had already caused the mining group Alphamin earlier this month to evacuate its employees and halt operations at its Bisie mine for the tin ore cassiterite, the world’s third largest, in the Walikale district. The region is also home to several gold mines.
Neighbouring countries and foreign powers have been stepping up diplomatic efforts to halt what has quickly become eastern DRC’s worst conflict since a 1998-2003 war that drew in multiple neighbouring countries.
The United Nations says Rwanda has supported M23 by providing arms and sending troops – an accusation Kigali denies.
The DR Congo and M23 had been expected to have their first direct talks on Tuesday in Angola. However, M23 pulled out of the talks on Monday, blaming European Union sanctions against some of its leaders and Rwandan officials.
Speaking to Reuters on Thursday, Corneille Nangaa, leader of the Congo River Alliance (AFC) that includes M23, said: “We will fight until our cause is heard.”
Regarding this week’s talks between Tshisekedi and Kagame in Qatar, he said, “What happened in Doha, as long as we don’t know the details, and as long as it doesn’t solve our problems, we’ll say it doesn’t concern us”.
The conflict has led to the displacement of tens of thousands of people to surrounding territories and neighbouring countries, according to the UN.