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.

Over 2,000 bodies require burial in Goma after Rwanda-backed M23 rebels took over the Democratic of Congo city last week, inflaming a decade-old conflict and humanitarian crisis, Congo's communications minister Patrick Muyaya said late on Monday.

The Eastern Congo rebel alliance that includes the M23 has declared a ceasefire for humanitarian reasons starting on Feb. 4, the group known as the Congo River Alliance said in a statement.