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 from eastern and southern Africa have called for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire in eastern Congo, where Rwanda-backed rebels are threatening to overthrow the Congolese government.

Congo's leader Felix Tshisekedi and his Rwandan counterpart Paul Kagame, who have exchanged fiery words blaming each other's governments for the upsurge in violence, agreed to attend the summit, although Tshisekedi may call in remotely, sources said.

Rwandan President Paul Kagame and his Congolese counterpart Felix Tshisekedi joined a summit in Tanzania on Saturday where regional leaders called for an "immediate ceasefire" in the Democratic Republ

Their crisis talks in Tanzania and Equatorial Guinea come as the long-running war escalates.History will judge leaders in Africa who fail to end the conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, President Samia Suluhu Hassan of Tanzania warned her counterparts at the start of an emergency summit on the weekend.