Scores of children have been disconnected from their family members amid the IDP crisis in eastern D.R. Congo and are now living in makeshift camps in Goma with poor sanitation and little protection from the ongoing rains.

Rumors of a rebel advancement in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo sent hundreds of people fleeing towards the city of Goma Tuesday, adding to the at least 186,000 people (UN) that have been displaced since March due to fighting between the Congolese army and the M23 fighters.

The M23 rebels, whom Congo accuses of receiving support from neighboring Rwanda, have more than doubled the territory they hold in recent weeks as they’ve grabbed control of several key towns.

Rwanda has repeatedly denied rumors that it’s lending military support to M23.

Aljazeera.