The UN Chief, warns against the Regional War on Dr Congo at the Africa Summit

Addis Abeba, Ethiopia (AFP): the head of the United Nations (UN) Antonio Guterres demanded on Saturday on Saturday to respect the “territorial integrity” of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and a regional war was avoided, in an African summit the day after the fighters backed by Rwandan. Provincial Capital of the RDC.

With the international pressure in Rwanda to stop fighting in the east of DR Congo (DRC), the conflict dominated the Summit of the African Union while opened in Addis Abeba.

The president of Ruanda, Paul Kagame, was seen attending meetings at the meeting, but the president of Dr Congo, Felix Tshisekedi, was absent from the summit when the M23 advanced through the territory of his country.

Having routed the Congolese army to capture the key provincial capital of rubber in northern Kivu last month, the armed group backed by Rwanda pushed toward neighbor South Kivu.

He took a key airport there before marching practically without control to another key city, Bukavu, on Friday, humanitarian and security sources said.

“The fight in southern Kivu, as a result of the continuation of the M23 offensive, threatens to push the entire region on the precipice,” Guterres told the leaders in a direction of the summit, not to mention Rwanda .

He urged the dialogue, saying that a regional escalation “at all costs” should be avoided, and that “there was no military solution.”

“And the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the DRC must be respected.”

-DRC CEASE FIRE CALL –

With the spectrum of a regional conflagration in the east of the RDC, the UA has been criticized for its shy approach and the observers have demanded a more decisive action.

The European Union said on Saturday that it was “urgently” considering all the options after Bukavu’s news.

“The continuous violation of the territorial integrity of the RDC will not remain unanswered,” he warned.

However, Guterres emphasized a later press conference: “The key to solving the problem is here” in Africa.

On February 8 of the East and southern February he asked for a high “immediate and unconditional” fire within five days, but the new fighting burst on Tuesday.

A meeting of the Peace and Security Council of the AU dedicated to the conflict was extended late on Friday night, without Kagame or Tshisekedi attending.

A government source told AFP that TSHISEKEDI would not attend the summit during the weekend, since he had to “closely follow the situation in the field in the RDC.”

AFP journalists in Bukavu reported sporadic shots on Saturday, with abandoned streets while residents took refuge inside after looting reports during the night.

On the other side of the nearby border in Rwanda, the AFP reporters in the city of Rusizi said the streets were unusually calm, but some shots were heard.

TSHISEKEDI, speaking at the Munich Security Conference on Friday, urged the “blacklist” of Rwanda, condemning “expansionist ambitions” of Kigali.

Ruanda has not admitted to having backed M23, but has accused Hutu extremist groups in Dr Congo of threatening their safety.

Dr. Congo accuses Rwanda of looting valuable minerals in his eastern provinces.

The neighbor Burundi has also sent thousands of troops to support the army in difficulties of Dr. Congo.