Dar es Salaam, March 20 -- CONGO: Rwanda-backed M23 rebels entered the strategic town of Walikale in eastern Congo late Wednesday, according to residents and civil society leaders, a day after the Congolese and Rwandan presidents called for an immediate ceasefire.

“The information is confirmed: the rebels are visible at the monument and at the Bakusu group office,” Prince Kihangi, a former provincial deputy elected for the Walikale territory told The Associated Press over the phone, referring to locations in the centre of Walikale. “This confirms the presence of the M23 in the territorial capital.”

By taking control of Walikale, the M23 rebels seized a road linking four provinces in the east of the country: North...