Rwandan-backed M23 rebels asserted their control over east Congo's largest city Goma on Thursday by calling on residents to resume normal life, even as the group clashed with Congolese troops as they tried to take more territory.

Rwanda-backed rebels who have captured eastern Congo’s largest city say they plan to take their rebellion to the capital and seek to gain political power

Congolese forces were losing control of the key city of Gom a on Wednesday after rebel groups backed by Rwanda took over the airport and shared plans to set up a new administration. Soldiers fighting for Congo - many of them mercenaries from other nations - were laying down their weapons at the border with Rwanda.