Renewed fighting between the M23 armed group and pro-government forces in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo has pushed thousands more people into Goma, the largest city in the east and a humanitarian aid hub that is now encircled by the Rwanda-backed rebels.

Goma's previous population was around 1.5 million, but an additional 700,000 people have arrived during the past two years of conflict, including more than 200,000 that have come in recent weeks as the M23 expands its control over an unprecedented amount of territory.

Displaced people, local and international humanitarian workers, and Goma residents all describe a city buckling under huge strain, with overwhelmed displacement camps, food prices rising sharply, and the fear of an M23 takeover looming large.

— Arlette Bashizi and Fidèle Kitsa for The New Humanitarian, April 4 (excerpt)

See our last reports on the M23 insurgency.