(Reuters) -Representatives of Congo's powerful Catholic church met on Wednesday with a rebel leader whose Rwandan-backed M23 forces last month seized Goma, the biggest city in the country's east, and have continued advancing south.

Hopes for a ceasefire in the Democratic Republic of Congo are fading as the Rwanda-backed rebel group, M23, is vying to expand its control. NBC News’ Steve Patterson reports on the violence in the mineral-rich country.

Analysts say the deadly march by Rwanda-backed rebels across eastern Congo could widen into a regional conflict drawing in even more countries, and the two nations most involved in the mineral-rich area might be the key to stopping the violence.