Tuesday, January 28

Rwanda-backed rebels have invaded the Democratic Republic of the Congo, taking the city of Goma as they storm through a small eastern area of the country.

The rebels are a militia known as M23, which stands for March 23 Movement. The group is made up primarily of Tutsis, an ethnic group of the African Great Lakes region who reside in the Rwanda-Burundi area. In 2012, they took control of Goma, but were defeated by Congolese and UN forces just months later after losing some Rwandan support. Since then, the organization has not been seen much, until now.

Goma is one of the largest cities in the eastern part of DRC, a region known as North Kivu, with a population of over 2 million. It is located along the small strip of the DRC that borders Rwanda, and the area is rich in various valuable materials, including copper, cobalt, gold, and diamonds, making it extremely appealing economically.

Due to this, many groups have attempted to take control of Goma and the surrounding region in the past, specifically during the 1990s, but M23 has emerged as the strongest rebel group to do so.

M23 began their incursion earlier this month, invading the area north of Goma. This forced thousands of people from surrounding rural areas into the city of Goma to escape the intense fighting, which included gunfire and bombings. Then, they stormed the city on Monday, taking control. As soon as they took over, they closed down Goma's airspace, trapping everyone inside, and have established that they plan to hold the city for a long period of time.

Rwanda has denied that they back M23-- Rwanda claimed that M23 was a Congolese rebel force with no correlation to them and that they would need to put up defense measures across the border as well. Nevertheless, the DRC has cut all ties with Rwanda, and countries all over the world have condemned Rwanda for their alleged actions.

Now, a humanitarian crisis is unfolding in the city, as thousands of refugees from the surrounding areas have fled into the city. Over 6 million people have already been displaced, and the latest bouts of fighting could further exacerbate that crisis. People have been trapped in Goma with no food, water, or shelter, and humanitarian aid cannot arrive due to the shut airspace, forcing many individuals and families to flee into neighboring Rwanda.

Fact of the Day (Reader's Digest): It is impossible to burp in space. When you burp on Earth, gravity keeps down the solids and liquids from the food you just ate, so only the gas escapes from your mouth. In the absence of gravity, the gas cannot separate from the liquids and solids, so burping essentially turns into vomiting.

Quote of the Day (Gracious Quotes): There are some things that you can fulfill with money, but at the end of the day these are not the things that make you happy. It is the small things that make life good.

(Sebastian Vettel)

Word of the Day (Merriam-Webster): Edify (noun, ED-uh-fye) - To edify someone is to teach them in a way that improves their mind or character.

In a Sentence: The commencement speaker hoped that her words would edify the graduates, and give them hope and encouragement.