Gunmen seize villages in DRC near Uganda, Rwanda borders

M23 rebels who sought refuge in Rwanda after they were defeated by Congolese and UN forces in 2013. FILE PHOTO | AFP

Gunmen seized at least two villages overnight in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo near the border with Uganda and Rwanda, a local official and an activist group said on Monday.

Lieutenant-Colonel Muhindo Luanzo, the assistant to the administrator of Rutshuru territory, blamed fighters from the M23, a rebel group that seized large swathes of territory in 2012 and 2013.