Sushi restaurateurs in Tokyo say they have paid 207m yen ($1.3m; £1m) for a bluefin tuna which is about the size and weight of a motorbike.

The sale is the second highest price ever paid at the annual new year auction at Toyosu Fish Market in the Japanese capital.

Onodera Group, which had the winning bid, said the tuna - which weighs in at 276kg (608lb) - would be served at its Michelin-starred Ginza Onodera restaurants, as well as Nadaman restaurants across the country.

"The first tuna is something meant to bring in good fortune," Onodera official Shinji Nagao told reporters after the auction, news agency AFP reported.

Mr Nagao added that he hoped people would eat the tuna - caught off the Aomori region in northern Japan - and "have a wonderful year".

The group has paid the top price in the Ichiban Tuna auction for five years straight.

Last year, it forked out 114m yen for the top tuna.

The highest auction price since comparable records began in 1999 was 333.6m yen in 2019 for a 278kg bluefin.

It was paid by self-styled Japanese "Tuna King" and sushi restaurant owner Kiyoshi Kimura.

Toyosu fish market, which opened in 1935, claims to be the biggest fish market in the world, and is known for pre-dawn daily tuna auctions.

But tuna was not the only catch on offer on Sunday, with Hokkaido sea urchins also fetching a record-breaking 7m yen according to the Japan Times.

Elon Musk's attack on Jess Phillips over grooming gangs is a "disgraceful smear", Health Secretary Wes Streeting has said.

Tech multi-billionaire Musk posted messages on his social media site X saying the safeguarding minister should be jailed and calling her a "rape genocide apologist", as well as criticising Sir Keir Starmer for failing to prosecute gangs.

It came after Phillips rejected a request for the government to lead a public inquiry into child sexual exploitation in Oldham - which sparked calls from the Conservatives and Reform UK for a national inquiry into grooming gangs.

Streeting told the BBC Musk's comments were "ill-judged" as Phillips had "done more than most people ever do" to fight sexual abuse.

On Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, Streeting said: "It is a disgraceful smear of a great woman who has spent her life supporting victims of the kind of violence that Elon Musk and others say that they're against.

"It's all very easy to sit there and fire off something in haste and click send when people like Keir Starmer and Jess Phillips have done the hard yards of actually locking up wife beaters, rapists and paedophiles."

Musk's latest intervention came after Phillips instructed Oldham Council in October to launch its own local inquiry into historic child sexual abuse in the town, similar to inquiries set up in Rochdale and Telford.

Musk said that she "deserves to be in prison" for her response.

The decision was also criticised by several senior Tories, despite the previous Conservative government turning down a similar request in 2022.

Musk, a key adviser to US President-elect Donald Trump, also suggested Sir Keir had failed to properly prosecute rape gangs while director of public prosecutions (DPP), and has repeatedly retweeted Reform UK and Conservative MPs calling for a national inquiry.

Streeting's comments came after Reform UK leader Nigel Farage defended Musk after he attacked the UK government's response to grooming gangs.

Speaking on the same programme, Farage said Musk had used "very tough terms" but that "free speech was back" on X under his ownership.

He said the public is "absolutely right to be" angry about grooming gangs and to ask why there had not been a full public inquiry.

Streeting challenged Musk to "roll up his sleeves" and help tackle violence against women on online platforms.

"Online platforms have got a role to play in keeping people safe online, helping law enforcement on perpetrators of violence against women and people who want to groom kids online."

The health secretary said Sir Keir and Phillips both had "records that their critics can't even begin to touch".

While director of public prosecutions, Sir Keir introduced a special prosecutor for child abuse and sexual exploitation to oversee convictions against grooming gangs.

Starmer also changed the Crown Prosecution Service guidance to encourage police to investigate suspects in complex sexual abuse cases and court reforms aimed at making the process less traumatic for victims.

"As director of prosecutions, Keir Starmer opened up historic cases, going after people who thought they had got away with it," Streeting said.

"As for Jess Phillips, the work that she has done in her professional life outside politics, supporting victims of violence against women and girls, she has helped support them to get their day in in court and lock up their abusers" he added.

Tory leader Kemi Badenoch has called for a full national public inquiry into what she called the UK's "rape gangs scandal".

But the party has also criticised Musk for "sharing things that are factually inaccurate" and distanced itself from his call for Phillips to be jailed.

Conservative shadow home secretary Chris Philp criticised Musk's comments on Phillips as "not appropriate" but argued he was "right to be raising the general issue".

Speaking on the same programme, Philp said politicians have an "obligation" to speak about difficult issues in a calm manner "but they also have an obligation to tell the truth" on these matters.

Oldham abuse inquiry

In a letter seen by the BBC, Phillips and Home Secretary Yvette Cooper wrote to the Conservatives setting out why they had asked Oldham Council to set up its own inquiry, rather than grant its request for a government-led one.

The letter pointed out the local authority had already started setting up its own inquiry, and added victims have said "loud and clear" they want action.

They said they supported an independent review commissioned by Mayor Andy Burnham, which covered historic abuse in Oldham and led to a new police investigation, as well as other child protection work across Greater Manchester.

The letter highlighted the work of the Child Sexual Abuse Inquiry which published its final findings in 2022. It made clear "abuse must be pursued and challenged everywhere with no fear or favour" - whether in care homes, churches, homes or by grooming gangs.

Professor Alexis Jay, who led that inquiry, said in November she felt "frustrated" that none of its 20 recommendations to tackle abuse had been implemented more than two years later.

There have been several investigations into grooming gangs in various parts of England, including Rotherham, Bristol, Cornwall and Derbyshire.

An inquiry into abuse in Rotherham found 1,400 children had been sexually abused over a 16-year period, predominantly by British Pakistani men.

An investigation in Telford found that up to 1,000 girls had been abused over 40 years - and that some cases had not been investigated because of "nervousness about race".

Ukraine has launched a fresh offensive in Russia's Kursk region, the Russian Defence Ministry says.

In a statement, the military said efforts to destroy the Ukrainian attack groups are ongoing. Officials in Ukraine have also suggested an operation is under way.

Ukraine first launched its incursion into Russia's Kursk region in August last year, seizing a large chunk of territory.

In recent months, Russian forces have made big gains in the area, pushing the Ukrainians back, but failing to eject them entirely.

In a statement posted on Telegram on Sunday, Russia's defence ministry said: "At around 9am Moscow time, in order to stop the offensive by the Russian troops in the Kursk direction, the enemy launched a counter-attack by an assault detachment consisting of two tanks, one counter-obstacle vehicle, and 12 armoured fighting vehicles."

The head of Ukraine's presidential office, Andriy Yermak, said there "was good news from Kursk Region" and that Russia was "getting what it deserves".

Ukraine's top counter-disinformation official Andriy Kovalenko said in a Telegram post on Sunday: "The Russians in Kursk are experiencing great anxiety because they were attacked from several directions and it came as a surprise to them."

It's unclear whether the offensive is sufficiently large-scale to lead to any significant changes on the frontline.

Kyiv's forces are reportedly suffering from manpower shortages and have been losing ground in the east of Ukraine in recent months, as Russian troops advance.

It comes as the Ukrainian Air Force said Russia launched another drone attack on Ukraine overnight.

It said it had shot down 61 drones over Kyiv, Poltava, Sumy, Kharkiv, Chernihiv, Cherkasy, Dnipropetrovsk, Zhytomyr, and Khmelnytskyy regions

There were no direct hits, but a few houses were damaged in Kharkiv Region by an intercepted drone, the air force said.

In November, Ukraine reported its troops had engaged in combat with North Korean troops in the Kursk region.

The appearance of North Korean soldiers was in response to a surprise attack launched across the border by Ukrainian troops in August, advancing up to 18 miles (30km) into Russian land.

Moscow evacuated almost 200,000 people from areas along the border and President Vladimir Putin condemned the Ukrainian offensive as a "major provocation".

After a fortnight, Ukraine's top commander claimed to control more than 1,200 sq km of Russian territory and 93 villages.

Some of that territory has been regained by Russia but Ukraine still has troops in the Kursk region.

Ukraine has launched a fresh offensive in Russia's Kursk region, the Russian Defence Ministry says.

In a statement, the military said efforts to destroy the Ukrainian attack groups are ongoing. Officials in Ukraine have also suggested an operation is under way.

Ukraine first launched its incursion into Russia's Kursk region in August last year, seizing a large chunk of territory.

In recent months, Russian forces have made big gains in the area, pushing the Ukrainians back, but failing to eject them entirely.

In a statement posted on Telegram on Sunday, Russia's defence ministry said: "At around 9am Moscow time, in order to stop the offensive by the Russian troops in the Kursk direction, the enemy launched a counter-attack by an assault detachment consisting of two tanks, one counter-obstacle vehicle, and 12 armoured fighting vehicles."

The head of Ukraine's presidential office, Andriy Yermak, said there "was good news from Kursk Region" and that Russia was "getting what it deserves".

Ukraine's top counter-disinformation official Andriy Kovalenko said in a Telegram post on Sunday: "The Russians in Kursk are experiencing great anxiety because they were attacked from several directions and it came as a surprise to them."

It's unclear whether the offensive is sufficiently large-scale to lead to any significant changes on the frontline.

Kyiv's forces are reportedly suffering from manpower shortages and have been losing ground in the east of Ukraine in recent months, as Russian troops advance.

It comes as the Ukrainian Air Force said Russia launched another drone attack on Ukraine overnight.

It said it had shot down 61 drones over Kyiv, Poltava, Sumy, Kharkiv, Chernihiv, Cherkasy, Dnipropetrovsk, Zhytomyr, and Khmelnytskyy regions

There were no direct hits, but a few houses were damaged in Kharkiv Region by an intercepted drone, the air force said.

In November, Ukraine reported its troops had engaged in combat with North Korean troops in the Kursk region.

The appearance of North Korean soldiers was in response to a surprise attack launched across the border by Ukrainian troops in August, advancing up to 18 miles (30km) into Russian land.

Moscow evacuated almost 200,000 people from areas along the border and President Vladimir Putin condemned the Ukrainian offensive as a "major provocation".

After a fortnight, Ukraine's top commander claimed to control more than 1,200 sq km of Russian territory and 93 villages.

Some of that territory has been regained by Russia but Ukraine still has troops in the Kursk region.

Hamas has posted a video showing a 19-year-old Israeli captive, as indirect talks between the group and Israel on a ceasefire and hostage release deal resume in Qatar.

The footage shows Liri Albag calling for the Israeli government to reach a deal.

She was taken hostage along with six other female conscript soldiers at the Nahal Oz army base on the Gaza border during Hamas's October 2023 attack. Five of them remain in captivity.

The announcement of renewed talks came as Israel intensified attacks on Gaza, with Palestinian rescuers saying more than 30 people had been killed in the bombardment on Saturday.

One strike on a home in Gaza City on Saturday killed 11 people including seven children, according to the Hamas-run civil defence agency.

Images showed residents searching through rubble for survivors and the bodies of the dead wrapped in shrouds.

"A huge explosion woke us up. Everything was shaking," neighbour Ahmed Mussa told AFP.

"It was home to children, women. There wasn't anyone wanted or who posed a threat."

The Israeli military said on Sunday that it had struck more than 100 "terror targets" in the Gaza Strip over the past two days and "eliminated dozens of Hamas terrorists".

Responding to the video showing their daughter, Liri Albag's parents said it had torn their hearts to pieces and they appealed to the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to "make decisions as if your own children were there".

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum Headquarters, which represents hostage families, said the sign of life from Liri was "harsh and undeniable proof of the urgency in bringing all the hostages home".

In a call to Lira Albag's parents, Israeli President Isaac Herzog said his country's delegation would remain at the negotiating table until all hostages were returned home.

Israeli officials have previously described the release of such videos by Hamas as psychological warfare.

Last month a senior Palestinian official told the BBC that talks to reach a ceasefire and hostage release deal were mostly complete, but key issues still needed to be bridged.

On Sunday the Israeli military said it had intercepted a missile launched from Yemen, the latest in a series of such attacks by the Iran-backed Houthi movement.

The Houthis said they had fired a "hypersonic ballistic missile" towards a power station near the Israeli city of Haifa. The group says it began targeting shipping in the Red Sea and firing projectiles at Israel in response to Israeli military actions in Gaza.

The current war began when Hamas attacked southern Israel on 7 October 2023, killing about 1,200 people and taking 251 others hostage.

Israel's military campaign to destroy Hamas has killed more than 45,700 people, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry.

On Saturday the Gaza health ministry said all three government hospitals in northern Gaza were completely out of service and "destroyed" by the Israeli military.

The Israeli military has imposed a blockade on parts of northern Gaza since October, with the UN saying the area has been under "near-total siege" as Israeli forces heavily restrict access of aid deliveries to an area where an estimated 10,000 to 15,000 people remain.

Late last month the Israeli military forced patients and medical staff to leave Kamal Adwan hospital in Beit Lahia, alleging the facility was a "Hamas terrorist stronghold" and arresting the hospital director Hussam Abu Safiya.

It said it had facilitated the transfer of some medical staff and patients to the Indonesian hospital nearby. But the Gaza health ministry said on Saturday that that hospital had also been taken out of service, along with the hospital in Beit Hanoun.

World Health Organisation chief Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus again called for an end to attacks on hospitals and health professionals. "People in Gaza need access to health care," he said.

Israel says its forces operate in accordance with international law and do not target civilians.

On Saturday the Biden administration said it was planning an $8bn (£6.4bn) arms sale to Israel. The weapons consignment, which needs approval from US House and Senate committees, includes missiles, shells and other munitions.

The move comes just over a fortnight before Biden leaves office and Donald Trump takes over as president.

Washington has consistently rejected calls to suspend military backing for Israel because of the number of civilians killed in Gaza.

Sixty-year-old Chinese grandmother Su Min had no intention of becoming a feminist icon.

She was only trying to escape her abusive husband when she hit the road in 2020 in her white Volkswagen hatchback with a rooftop tent and her pension.

"I felt like I could finally catch my breath," she says, recalling the moment she drove away from her old life. "I felt like I could survive and find a way of life that I wanted."

Over the next four years and 180,000 miles, the video diaries she shared of her adventures, while detailing decades of pain, earned her millions of cheerleaders online. They called her the "road-tripping auntie" as she inadvertently turned into a hero for women who felt trapped in their own lives.

Her story is now a hit film that was released in September - Like a Rolling Stone – and she made it to the BBC's list of 100 inspiring and influential women of 2024.

It was a year of big moments, but if she had to describe what 2024 meant to her in a single word, she says that word would be "freedom".

As soon as Su Min started driving, she felt freer, she told the BBC over the phone from Shenyang – just before she headed south for winter in her new SUV with a caravan.

But it wasn't until 2024, when she finally filed for divorce, that she experienced "another kind of freedom".

It took a while to get there: it's a complicated process in China and her husband refused to divorce her until she agreed to pay him. They settled on 160,000 yuan ($21,900; £17,400) but she is still waiting for the divorce certificate to come through.

But she is resolute that she doesn't want to look back: "I'm saying goodbye to him."

The road to freedom

In her new life on the road, Su Min's duty is to herself.

Her videos mostly feature only her. Although she drives alone, she never seems lonely. She chats with her followers as she films her journey, sharing what she has been cooking, how she spent the previous day and where she's going next.

Her audience travels with her to places they never knew they would long for – Xinjiang's snow-capped mountains, Yunnan's ancient river towns, sparkling blue lakes, vast grasslands, endless deserts.

They applaud her bravery and envy the freedom she has embraced. They had rarely heard such a raw first-hand account about the reality of life as a "Chinese auntie".

"You're so brave! You chose to break free," wrote one follower, while another urged her to "live the rest of your life well for yourself!". One woman sought advice because she too "dreams of driving alone" and an awe-struck follower said: "Mom, look at her! When I get older, I'll live a colourful life like hers if I don't get married!"

For some, the takeaways are more pragmatic yet inspiring: "After watching your videos, I've learned this: as women, we must own our own home, cultivate friendships far and wide, work hard to be financially independent, and invest in unemployment insurance!"

Through it all, Su Min processes her own past. A stray cat she encounters on the road reminds her of herself, both of them having "weathered the wind and rain for years but still managing to love this world that dusts our faces". A visit to the market, where she smells chili peppers, evokes "the smell of freedom" because throughout her marriage spicy food was forbidden by her husband who didn't like it.

For years Su Min had been the dutiful daughter, wife and mother – even as her husband repeatedly struck her.

"I was a traditional woman and I wanted to stay in my marriage for life," she says. "But eventually I saw that I got nothing in return for all my energy and effort – only beatings, violence, emotional abuse and gaslighting."

Her husband, Du Zhoucheng, has admitted to hitting her. "It's my mistake that I beat you," he said in a video she recently shared on Douyin, TikTok's China platform.

A high school graduate, he had a government job in the water resources ministry for 40 years before retiring, according to local media reports. He told an outlet in 2022 that he beat his wife because she "talked back" and that it was "an ordinary thing": "In a family, how can there not be some bangs and crashes?"

When duty called

Su Min married Du Zhoucheng "really to avoid my father's control, and to avoid the whole family".

She was born and raised in Tibet until 1982, when her family moved to Henan, a bustling province in the valley along the Yellow River. She had just finished high school and found work in a fertiliser factory, where most of her female colleagues, including those younger than 20, already had husbands.

Her marriage was arranged by a matchmaker, which was common at the time. She had spent much of her life cooking for and looking after her father and three younger brothers. "I wanted to change my life," she says.

The couple met only twice before the wedding. She wasn't looking for love, but she hoped that love would grow once they married.

Su Min did not find love. But she did have a daughter, and that is one reason she convinced herself she needed to endure the abuse.

"We are always so afraid of being ridiculed and blamed if we divorce, so we all choose to endure, but in fact, this kind of patience is not right," she says. "I later learned that, in fact, it can have a considerable impact on children. The child really doesn't want you to endure, they want you to stand up bravely and give them a harmonious home."

She thought of leaving her husband after her daughter got married, but soon she became a grandmother. Her daughter had twins – and once again duty called. She felt she needed to help care for them, although by now she had been diagnosed with depression.

"I felt that if I didn't leave, I would get sicker," she says. She promised her daughter she would care for the two boys until they went to kindergarten, and then she would leave.

The spark of inspiration for her escape came in 2019 while flicking through social media. She found a video about someone travelling while living in their van. This was it, she thought to herself. This was her way out.

Even the pandemic did not stop her. In September 2020, she drove away from her marital home in Zhengzhou and she barely looked back as she made her way through 20 Chinese provinces and more than 400 cities.

It's a decision that has certainly resonated with women in China. To her millions of followers, Su Min offers comfort and hope. "We women are not just someone's wife or mother… Let's live for ourselves!" wrote one follower.

Many of them are mothers who share their own struggles. They tell her that they too feel trapped in suffocating marriages – some say her stories have inspired them to walk out of abusive relationships.

"You are a hero to thousands of women and many now see the possibility of a better life because of you," reads one of the top comments on one of her most-watched videos.

"When I turn 60, I hope I can be as free as you," another comment says.

A third woman asks: "Auntie Su, can I travel with you? I'll cover all the expenses. I just want to take a trip with you. I feel so trapped and depressed in my current life."

'Love yourself'

"Can you have the life of your dreams?" Su Min pondered over the call. "I want to tell you that no matter how old you are, as long as you work hard, you will definitely find your answer. Just like me, even though I'm 60 now, I found what I was looking for."

She admits it wasn't easy and she had to live frugally on her pension. She thought the video blogs might help raise some money – she had no idea they would go viral.

She talks about what she's learned over the years and her latest challenge – finalising the divorce.

"I haven't got my divorce certificate yet, because the law has a cooling-off period and we are now in that period."

One of her followers wrote that the money she paid her husband was "worth every penny", adding: "Now it's your turn to see the world and live a vibrant, unrestrained life. Congratulations, Auntie - here's to a colourful and fulfilling future!"

She says it's hard to get a divorce because "many of our laws in China are to protect the family. Women often dare not divorce because of family disharmony".

At first, she thought that Du Zhoucheng's behaviour might improve with time and distance, but she said he still threw "pots and pans" at her on her return.

He has only called her twice in the last few years – once because her highway access card was tied to his credit card and he wanted her to return 81 yuan (£0.90). She says she hasn't used that card since then.

Undeterred by the delay in securing a divorce, Su Min keeps planning more trips and hopes to one day travel abroad.

She's worried about overcoming language barriers, but is confident her story will resonate around the world - as it has in China.

"Although women in every country are different, I would like to say that no matter what environment you are in, you must be good to yourself. Learn to love yourself, because only when you love yourself can the world be full of sunshine."

Additional reporting by Fan Wang in Singapore

Hamas has posted a video showing a 19-year-old Israeli captive, as indirect talks between the group and Israel on a ceasefire and hostage release deal resume in Qatar.

The footage shows Liri Albag calling for the Israeli government to reach a deal.

She was taken hostage along with six other female conscript soldiers at the Nahal Oz army base on the Gaza border during Hamas's October 2023 attack. Five of them remain in captivity.

The announcement of renewed talks came as Israel intensified attacks on Gaza, with Palestinian rescuers saying more than 30 people had been killed in the bombardment on Saturday.

One strike on a home in Gaza City on Saturday killed 11 people including seven children, according to the Hamas-run civil defence agency.

Images showed residents searching through rubble for survivors and the bodies of the dead wrapped in shrouds.

"A huge explosion woke us up. Everything was shaking," neighbour Ahmed Mussa told AFP.

"It was home to children, women. There wasn't anyone wanted or who posed a threat."

The Israeli military said on Sunday that it had struck more than 100 "terror targets" in the Gaza Strip over the past two days and "eliminated dozens of Hamas terrorists".

Responding to the video showing their daughter, Liri Albag's parents said it had torn their hearts to pieces and they appealed to the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to "make decisions as if your own children were there".

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum Headquarters, which represents hostage families, said the sign of life from Liri was "harsh and undeniable proof of the urgency in bringing all the hostages home".

In a call to Lira Albag's parents, Israeli President Isaac Herzog said his country's delegation would remain at the negotiating table until all hostages were returned home.

Israeli officials have previously described the release of such videos by Hamas as psychological warfare.

Last month a senior Palestinian official told the BBC that talks to reach a ceasefire and hostage release deal were mostly complete, but key issues still needed to be bridged.

On Sunday the Israeli military said it had intercepted a missile launched from Yemen, the latest in a series of such attacks by the Iran-backed Houthi movement.

The Houthis said they had fired a "hypersonic ballistic missile" towards a power station near the Israeli city of Haifa. The group says it began targeting shipping in the Red Sea and firing projectiles at Israel in response to Israeli military actions in Gaza.

The current war began when Hamas attacked southern Israel on 7 October 2023, killing about 1,200 people and taking 251 others hostage.

Israel's military campaign to destroy Hamas has killed more than 45,700 people, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry.

On Saturday the Gaza health ministry said all three government hospitals in northern Gaza were completely out of service and "destroyed" by the Israeli military.

The Israeli military has imposed a blockade on parts of northern Gaza since October, with the UN saying the area has been under "near-total siege" as Israeli forces heavily restrict access of aid deliveries to an area where an estimated 10,000 to 15,000 people remain.

Late last month the Israeli military forced patients and medical staff to leave Kamal Adwan hospital in Beit Lahia, alleging the facility was a "Hamas terrorist stronghold" and arresting the hospital director Hussam Abu Safiya.

It said it had facilitated the transfer of some medical staff and patients to the Indonesian hospital nearby. But the Gaza health ministry said on Saturday that that hospital had also been taken out of service, along with the hospital in Beit Hanoun.

World Health Organisation chief Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus again called for an end to attacks on hospitals and health professionals. "People in Gaza need access to health care," he said.

Israel says its forces operate in accordance with international law and do not target civilians.

On Saturday the Biden administration said it was planning an $8bn (£6.4bn) arms sale to Israel. The weapons consignment, which needs approval from US House and Senate committees, includes missiles, shells and other munitions.

The move comes just over a fortnight before Biden leaves office and Donald Trump takes over as president.

Washington has consistently rejected calls to suspend military backing for Israel because of the number of civilians killed in Gaza.

Rebel forces backed by Rwanda have captured the town of Masisi in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, according to various reports.

This is the second town seized by the M23 group in as many days in the mineral-rich North Kivu province.

The group has taken control of vast swathes of eastern DR Congo since 2021, forcing hundreds of thousands of people to flee their homes.

Angola has been attempting to mediate talks between President Félix Tshisekedi and his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame. But these broke down last month.

"It is with dismay that we learn of the capture of Masisi centre by the M23," Alexis Bahunga, a member of North Kivu provincial assembly, told the AFP news agency.

He said this "plunges the territory into a serious humanitarian crisis" and urged the government to strengthen the capacity of the army in the region.

One resident told AFP that the M23 had held a meeting of the town's inhabitants, saying they had "come to liberate the country".

The Congolese authorities have not yet commented on the loss of the town.

Masisi, which has a population of about 40,000, is the capital of the territory of the same name.

It is about 80km (50 miles) north of the North Kivu provincial capital Goma, which the M23 briefly occupied in 2012.

On Friday, the M23 captured the nearby town of Katale.

Last year, there were fears that the M23 would once again march on Goma, a city of about two million people.

However, there was then a lull in fighting until early December when fighting resumed.

In July, Rwanda did not deny a UN report saying it had about 4,000 soldiers fighting alongside the M23 in DR Congo.

It accused the Congolese government of not doing enough to tackle decades of conflict in the east of the country. Rwanda has previously said the authorities in DR Congo were working with some of those responsible for the 1994 Rwandan genocide against ethnic Tutsis and moderate Hutus.

The M23, formed as an offshoot of another rebel group, began operating in 2012 ostensibly to protect the Tutsi population in the east of DR Congo which had long complained of persecution and discrimination.

However, Rwanda's critics accuse it of using the M23 to loot eastern DR Congo's minerals such as gold, cobalt and tantalum, which are used to make mobile phones and batteries for electric cars.

Last month, DR Congo said it was suing Apple over the use of such "blood minerals", prompting the tech giant to say it had stopped getting supplies from the country.

Find out more about the conflict in DR Congo:

• Rwanda and Uganda backed M23 rebels, UN experts say
• Apple accused of using DR Congo conflict minerals
• WATCH: Refugees fleeing M23 rebels say they ‘feel powerless’
• Why TikTokers are quitting vapes over DR Congo
• A quick guide to DR Congo

Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.

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