France expresses its solidarity regarding the Democratic Republic of Congo and condemns actions by Rwanda in the country, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on Monday.

Gunfire rang out early on Monday across parts of Goma, the largest city in eastern Congo, hours after Rwanda-backed rebels said they had seized the city despite the United Nations Security Council's calling for an end to the offensive.

M23 rebels claim they now control the Congolese city of Goma—an act Congo's government described as a 'declaration of war.'

Congolese rebels and allied Rwandan forces entered the outskirts of Goma on Sunday and the airport in the key eastern city was no longer in use, the top UN official in the country said. Thousands fled the fighting that also killed at least 13 peacekeepers.

Residents in eastern Congo's largest city, Goma, woke up on Monday morning uncertain about who is in control of the city, which Rwanda-backed rebels claimed to have captured.

Rwandan backed rebels have entered the city of Goma, a key city in neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo. Could the mineral rich region be in danger of tipping into all out regional conflict?

Congolese rebels said on Sunday they had taken Goma, the biggest city in the east of the mineral-rich country, after a lightning advance that has forced thousands of people to flee and fueled concerns of a regional war.

Fighting has escalated sharply in recent weeks in eastern Congo, where rebels have seized key towns and are closing in on the city of Goma, the government’s last stronghold in the North Kivu province,

Footage shows troops, some in army uniform, handing over arms to Rwandan security officers after crossing into eastern neighboring country at the main border crossing in Rwanda's Rubavu district - Ana

The Democratic Alliance (DA) calls for an urgent and immediate debate in Parliament to assess whether South African soldiers deployed in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) were adequately equipped for the mission, and how we can prevent such a tragedy from happening again.

The prison break in Goma comes as Rwandan-backed rebels say they have captured the lakeside city in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Video credit: Social Media.