Nearly 3,000 people were killed over the last week as rebels captured a key city in one of the deadliest battles in the Central African country in decades.

Rebels in eastern Congo's largest city, Goma, began a ceasefire on Tuesday and people rushed to bury some 2,000 victims of last week's battles for the city as they feared the spread of disease.

A rebel group that claimed to have captured the city of Goma in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo last week has called for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire, after fighting with the Congolese military has left hundreds of people dead.

Rwanda-backed M23 rebels have claimed to capture a key city in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo - Goma. This is the latest and sharpest escalation in one of Africa’s longest wars.

The city of 2 million people is at the heart of a region home to trillions of dollars in mineral wealth and remains in rebel control.