Congolese soldiers have retreated from positions at the airport near the eastern town of Bukavu after two hours of fighting with an advancing column of 1,000 renegade troops, the UN said today.
"The national army said it made a strategic withdrawal to the south of Kavumu airport and the unidentified troops moved units into position north and west of the airport," a spokesman for the UN mission in Congo said.
He added there have been reports of looting in the town of Kavumu and that a big UN force still controlled the airport, some 35 kilometres north of Bukavu, and had not engaged in fighting.
Bukavu was calm today after nearly three days of fighting last week between rival army factions that killed at least 27 and injured 81. There were no immediate details of casualties from the clashes near the airport.
Democratic Republic of Congo is struggling to emerge from a five-year regional conflict, but efforts to forge a new national army incorporating several former rebel factions with government troops have been beset by political differences.