A spokesperson for the Rwanda-backed M23 rebels fighting in eastern Congo has been killed in a drone strike, a local U.N. official and a rights group said Tuesday, escalating tensions over the region’s conflict after peace negotiations stalled. Willy Ngoma, a senior officer who was deeply involved in M23’s operations in eastern Congo, was said to have been killed in a predawn drone strike near the North Kivu province’s mining town of Rubaya. The local U.N. official and a coordinator with the rights group working in the area spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity for fear of their lives. Residents told the AP that the drone strike targeted an area that has in recent weeks served as an enclave for the M23.

Full report : M23 rebel spokesperson killed in Congo army drone strike, officials say.