The rebels said the ceasefire would start Tuesday. The announcement came shortly after the U.N. said 900 people were killed in last week’s fighting in Goma between rebels and Congolese forces.

The rebel group M23 declared a ceasefire in areas under its control in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, citing humanitarian reasons. The streets of Goma were busy as aid groups rushed Tuesday to help the thousands of people wounded and displaced during the past week’s fighting between M23 and pro-Congolese government forces.

A conflict that has raged for decades reached a flashpoint this week when rebels backed by Rwanda marched on a key Congolese city in a bid to occupy territory and exploit minerals.

The M23 rebels took control of a town 100 kilometres (60 miles) from the provincial capital of Bukavu despite a ceasefire.

Rwandan-backed M23 rebels have seized control of a mining town in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo's South Kivu province, eight sources said on Wednesday, in an apparent violation of a unilateral ceasefire they declared this week.