The governor of eastern Congo’s North Kivu province has died from injuries sustained during fighting on the front line, a military spokesman said Friday, as M23 rebels closed in on the provincial capital.

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,

A Rwanda-backed militia seized the pivotal Congolese city of Goma this week, threatening a new humanitarian crisis after decades of fighting.

The Democratic Republic of Congo’s government says the Rwanda-backed rebels’ advance constitutes a “declaration of war."

GOMA, Congo — The governor of eastern Congo’s North Kivu province has died from injuries ... Banchereau reported from Dakar, Senegal. Associated Press writer Christina Malkia in Kinshasa ...

The security situation in the city of Goma is deteriorating, and journalists can no longer report, the media has been forced into silence, there is no stable access to electricity or the internet. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) is urgently alerting the international community to this crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and calling on the parties involved in conflict to respect and protect the public’s right to information.

The ICRC has treated more than 600 wounded and injured people since the start of January, of which around half were civilians. A large number of these civilians were women and children.

In recent weeks, the armed conflict between the M23/AFC and the Congolese army, backed by their allies, has flared up again in the province of North Kivu and spread to the neighbouring province of South Kivu.

The M23 group is one of about 100 armed factions vying for a foothold in eastern Congo in one of Africa’s longest wars, which has displaced 4.5 million people.

Reuters quoted the spokesperson as saying that the UN is deeply concerned by these developments, which are backed by "credible reports."

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As an East African bloc urged an immediate ceasefire in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwandan-backed M23 rebels who seized the city of Goma extended their advance on Wednesday, and Congo said it planned a campaign to recover lost territory.