African leaders call for Congo peace as army, rebels clash

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By Kenny Katombe and Pascal Fletcher MBUZI, Democratic Republic of Congo/PRETORIA (Reuters) - African leaders and international envoys appealed to Congo's government and M23 rebels on Monday to stop fighting and embrace a peace deal after the two sides bombarded each other near the Ugandan border. The appeals were made as United Nations and U.S. envoys said the elements of an accord to end the 20-month insurgency in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo were broadly agreed and only required public commitments to end the hostilities. A rapid Congolese army advance in recent weeks has driven the M23 rebels from towns and cornered them in the steep, forested hills along the Ugandan border, raising the prospect of peace for Congo's mineral-rich eastern borderlands. But before leaders from southern Africa and the Great Lakes region that includes Congo met in Pretoria late on Monday to back the peace moves, Congolese authorities accused the rebels of shelling the frontier town of Bunagana and said it showed M23's weekend ceasefire declaration was worthless.




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