Refugees and surrendering DRC soldiers stream into Rwanda

Refugees, surrendering Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) soldiers and stranded truckers thronged the Rwandan border on Tuesday, hoping to reach safety after rebels captured the nearby city of Goma.

Gunfire and explosions could be heard from Goma late on Monday and early on Tuesday in Rubavu district on Rwanda's northeast frontier with the DRC.

Through the night people waited on the DRC side of the border, laden with mattresses and the belongings they could grab as Rwanda-backed M23 fighters advanced on Goma.

At daylight on Tuesday, Rwanda began admitting them, some holding their hands aloft in thanks as they walked across the border.

"We saw and heard terrible things. Dead bodies, gunshots, bombs," said Alois Emmanuel Bebe, a Tanzanian trucker among a group of 47 drivers seeking refuge in Rwanda after they were cut off by fighting in eastern DRC.

An escalation of the three-year insurgency in the DRC since the start of the year has forced around 400,000 people from their homes.

As in previous security crises in the rebel-torn region, some refugees have headed to Rwanda even as the DRC and UN accuse the neighbour of fuelling the conflict with its own troops and weapons.

Families waited on Tuesday to be registered at an open air refugee reception centre in the Rwandan border town of Gisenyi. Small children clung to the skirts of their mothers, some of whom had babies strapped to their backs or fronts.

Elsewhere, Rwandan authorities processed DRC soldiers.

In a hall in Gisenyi, dozens of men sat on the floor under the watch of members of the Rwanda defence force. Some wore army boots and fatigues with the DRC insignia. A few received treatment for cuts and minor injuries.

Rwandan regional ambassador Vincent Karega said 102 DRC soldiers had surrendered by voluntarily crossing into Rwanda on Monday.

"More continue to cross today. They run away from the battles," he told Reuters, adding they would be treated like other refugees once disarmed and registered.

"They will return home at will when it suits them, or decide to go into exile in Rwanda or elsewhere."

It is not yet clear how many citizens and soldiers have fled to Rwanda in recent days. DRC citizens accounted for more than 56% of the 114,461 refugees there as of November, according to the UN refugee agency.

The DRC government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Reuters