A joint summit of leaders from eastern and southern Africa is underway in Tanzania as African governments try to find a solution to the violent conflict in eastern Congo, where rebels are threatening to overthrow the Congolese government.

Leaders of Eastern and Southern African regional blocs met for an unprecedented joint summit on Saturday to find a solution to a conflict in eastern Congo, where Rwandan-backed rebels’ rapid advance since January has fanned fears of a wider war.

Leaders across Africa have asked defense chiefs to come up with a roadmap to end the conflict in eastern Congo. Their crisis talks in Tanzania and Equatorial Guinea come as the long-running war escalates.

Leaders from Eastern and Southern African regional blocs gather in Tanzania on Saturday to seek a solution to the conflict in eastern Congo, where Rwandan-backed rebels have seized a major city in the worst escalation of fighting in more than a decade.

A high-stakes joint summit of the East African Community (EAC) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) officially kicked off in Tanzania on Saturday, with regional leaders demanding an immediate ceasefire in the escalating conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Democratic Republic of Congo's President Felix Tshisekedi will take part in a joint summit of Eastern and Southern African leaders starting on Friday to discuss the conflict in its east, where Rwandan-backed rebels are seizing more territory.