Rwandan -backed rebels who have swept through eastern Congo this week met resistance from the army and its allies including Burundian troops as they tried to push south on Friday, a Congolese official and another source said.

As the rebels gained the upper hand in the battlefield by capturing most of Goma - the biggest city in the east - South Africa fired a diplomatic salvo, warning that further attac

M23 rebels fighting the Congolese army in eastern Congo are using advanced weapons and equipment similar to those used by the Israeli army and US special forces, a retired South African army general said Tuesday.