A town at the heart of mining coltan, a key ingredient in making mobile phones, has been seized in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo by rebel forces, their spokesman has said. Rubaya fell into the hands of M23 fighters on Tuesday following heavy clashes with government troops, Willy Ngoma said.

Rubaya, a key mining town for coltan in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. has been taken over following days of intense fighting, a rebel spokesman said. DR Congo’s east has been plagued by violence since the 1990s, with millions killed as struggles ...