DRC's Goma city bans vehicles with tinted glass amid security alerts

Local authorities on Tuesday banned the circulation of vehicles with tinted glass in Goma, the capital of North Kivu Province, eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), where fighting rages between the Congolese soldiers and armed rebels.

"Following alerts and reports from special services, vehicles with tinted glasses constitute a source of insecurity in the city of Goma," said Peter Chirimwami, military governor of the province.

According to him, a period of 72 hours is granted to owners of vehicles to comply with the regulation.

The security situation remains volatile around Goma, with fighting between the DRC military and the March 23 Movement (M23) rebellion, with the latter having recently launched multiple offensives against military positions.

With the main roads between Goma and its surroundings cut off by the M23, the city of Goma is on the verge of economic suffocation, while the situation remains highly volatile on the frontline.

It is holding on with the influx of civilians into displacement camps, which risks worsening the already precarious humanitarian crisis, with the supply of goods heavily cut off by the M23's advance.

UN peacekeeping forces have been redeployed to help defend Goma and Sake, a town located about 27 km from Goma, said Monday Stephane Dujarric, principal spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

He added the mission's peacekeeping force, known as Monusco, was deeply concerned by the new escalation of hostilities by the M23 rebels in North Kivu Province.