Rebel army seizes control of Congo city

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Rebel soldiers attack Goma in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The rebels are allegedly backed by Rwanda and threaten troops backed by United Nations peacekeepers. NBCNews.com's Dara Brown reports.By ReutersGOMA -- Rebels widely believed to be backed by Rwanda claimed control of Goma in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo Tuesday, parading through this frontier city of a million people past United Nations peacekeepers who did nothing to stop them.

Hundreds of fighters from the M23 group entered Goma after days of clashes with U.N.-backed Congolese soldiers that forced tens of thousands of residents to flee.

Follow @NBCNewsWorld A senior U.N. source told Reuters that international peacekeepers had given up defending the city after the Congolese troops left.

"There is no army left in the town, not a soul... Once they were in the town what could we do? It could have been very serious for the population," he said, asking not to be named.

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