Residents of the besieged city of Goma, in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, say they are gripped by fear as gunshots continue to ring out around their homes, days after rebel forces claimed they had taken over.

The United Nations and other aid agencies on Tuesday reported that dead bodies are scattered in the streets of Goma, and hospitals overwhelmed with patients with gunshot and shrapnel wounds. This is coming a day after Rwanda-backed rebels marched into the biggest city in eastern Congo.

Democratic Republic of Congo's M23 rebels are moving south towards Bukavu, the capital of South Kivu province, in what appears to be an attempt to expand their area of control in the country's east after capturing the city of Goma.

Rebels seized the airport of east Congo's largest city, Goma, on Tuesday, potentially cutting off the main route for aid to reach hundreds of thousands of displaced people, after capturing the city in an offensive that left dead bodies lying in the streets.