Congo’s government says it will participate in peace talks in Angola with the Rwanda-backed M23 rebel group that has captured key areas of Congo’s mineral-rich east.

(Reuters) -Rwandan-backed M23 rebels said on Monday they would send a delegation to peace talks with Democratic Republic of Congo's government expected to begin on Tuesday in Angola's capital. The five-member delegation is expected to leave for Luanda on Monday for dialogue at the request of Angolan authorities,

The M23 rebels on Monday continued their offensive in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo ahead of direct peace talks with the Congolese government in Angola, according to local media. The fighting approached the territorial capital of Walikale in the eastern province of North Kivu, Congolese news website Actualite reported.