Congolese army fights to repel Rwanda-backed rebels in fighting that has killed some 700 people

GOMA, Congo (AP) - A weakened Congolese military fought back against Rwanda-backed rebels who the U.N. said were moving fast into the South Kivu province after seizing the region’s largest city and an international airport. The crisis, which the U.N. said killed 700 people this week, puts a second regional airport at risk.

As the fighting raged on with the M23 rebels Saturday, the Congolese army recaptured the villages of Sanzi, Muganzo and Mukwidja in South Kivu’s Kalehe territory, which had fallen to the rebels earlier this week, according to two civil society officials. who spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity over fear for their safety.

The central African nation's military has been weakened after it lost hundreds of troops and foreign mercenaries surrendered to the rebels after the fall of Goma.

U.N. peacekeeping chief Jean-Pierre Lacroix, meanwhile, said the M23 and Rwandan forces were about 60 kilometers (37 miles) north of South Kivu's provincial capital of Bukavu, covering almost the same distance in the previous two days since they started advancing along Lake Kivu on the border with Rwanda. Lacroix said the rebels "seem to be moving quite fast," and capturing an airport a few kilometers (miles) away “would be another really significant step."

M23 is the most potent of more than 100 armed groups vying for control in Congo's mineral-rich east, which holds vast deposits critical to much of the world's technology. They are backed by around 4,000 troops from neighboring Rwanda, according to U.N. experts, far more than in 2012, when they first captured Goma and held it for days in a conflict driven by ethnic grievances.

The seizure of Goma resulted in a dire humanitarian crisis, the U.N. and aid group have said. Goma serves as a humanitarian hub critical for many of the 6 million people displaced by the conflict in eastern Congo. The rebels said they will march all the way to Congo’s capital Kinshasa, 1,600 kilometers (1,000 miles) to the west.

U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric also told a briefing Friday that the World Health Organization and its partners conducted an assessment with Congo's government between Jan. 26-30, and reported that 700 people have been killed and 2,800 injured in Goma and the vicinity. Dujarric confirmed to AP that the deaths occurred during those days.

The rebel advance has left in its wake extrajudicial killings and forced conscription of civilians, U.N. human rights office spokesman Jeremy Laurence said Friday. "We have also documented summary executions of at least 12 people by M23" from Jan. 26-28, Laurence said, adding that the group has also occupied schools and hospitals in the province and are subjecting civilians to forced conscription and forced labor.

Congolese forces have also been accused of sexual violence as fighting rages on in the region, Laurence said, adding the U.N. is verifying reports that Congolese troops raped 52 women in South Kivu.

Goma's capture has brought humanitarian operations to "a standstill, cutting off a vital lifeline for aid delivery across eastern (Congo)," said Rose Tchwenko, country director for Mercy Corps aid group in Congo.

"The escalation of violence toward Bukavu raises fears of even greater displacement, while the breakdown of humanitarian access is leaving entire communities stranded without support," she said.

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Asadu reported from Abuja, Nigeria and Pronczuk reported from Dakar, Senegal.