M23 advances to Goma forcing thousands flee in eastern DR Congo .

Congolese running away with their materials from Goma where M23 is advancing to

Thousands of people are fleeing violence in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo as fighting intensifies between the Congolese army and the M23 armed group.

Fighters reportedly surrounded the strategic town of Sake on Wednesday, a crucial step before reaching Goma, the capital of North Kivu. Capturing Sake would deal a logistical blow to Congolese soldiers.

The Congolese army and United Nations peacekeepers have been struggling to contain M23’s advance. And as fighting continues, thousands of those who fled Sake have arrived in Bulengo, about 10km (six miles) west of Goma.

Thousands are “on the road right now”, trying to escape the violence and get to Goma, Al Jazeera’s Alain Uaykani said, reporting from Bulengo on Wednesday.

“They have been fighting for a week right now, but this morning, again, rebels have tried to take over the main city,” he explained.

It remains unclear whether the army or the rebels are now controlling the area, Uaykani added.

“The situation in Sake is very bad with heavy fighting between soldiers and M23 rebels. They have attacked with heavy guns and bombs fell on the city … this is why we are leaving for Goma,” Justin Musau, a displaced person from Sake, told Al Jazeera.

Another displaced person, Henriette Muyume, said, “We are running from the fighting between rebels and soldiers. We don’t know where we can go … but we can’t survive in this situation, it’s too much for us.”

n a region already plagued with militia violence, M23 rebels launched a major new offensive in March 2022, sparking a conflict that has led to military intervention and mediation efforts by East African regional leaders. They brokered a ceasefire last year but it has been repeatedly violated.

Clashes between the rebels, army forces and self-defence groups that support them have escalated recently, forcing entire communities in Masisi and Rutshuru territories to flee to perceived areas of greater safety on the outskirts of Goma.

Meanwhile in Goma on Wednesday, a rocket landed near a university. There were no casualties from the attack, which blasted a crater into an area of open ground in the Lac Vert neighbourhood northwest of Goma, but it underscored the potential threat to the city of approximately two million people.

“This shows that M23 is targeting Goma now, they want to kill people in Goma. The government has to do something to stop M23’s progress,” student Sophonie Bayonga, 25, told the Reuters news agency at the scene.

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