'I love you very much, that is why we are here'

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​Col. Kazarama addresses the population in Goma

Goma has been taken for the first time in years. M23 rebels took over the city, ousting government forces whilst the United Nations peacekeepers, who had sworn to protect the city, stood by.​

​Since April, I have been covering the evolution of the M23 rebellion in eastern Congo largely for Agence France-Presse, who asked me to write about my experiences in this latest stage of events.

The title of the post on their Behind the news blog comes from Col. Vianney Kazarama's ​remarks as he addressed a crowd of civilians in Goma, the day after the city fell. Kazarama is the M23 spokesman.

Read more here: AFP Correspondents' Blog: 'I love you very much, that is why we are here'

(As a note, some of the text has been slightly edited from my original version.)​