UK government staff withdraw from DRC city of Goma 24 August 2013 Last updated at 17:50 UK Foreign Office staff who had been working in Goma in the Democratic Republic of Congo are to leave the city overnight following heavy fighting in the area, the department has said. UN troops in the country have launched an offensive, shelling positions held by rebels near Goma. The UN was responding to shelling from M23 rebels on Goma on Thursday, a spokesman said. The Foreign Office said it would review the situation on Sunday. A "small number" of staff were affected, it added. It has also updated its travel advice, advising against all travel to some parts of the country. UK Minister for Africa, Mark Simmonds, tweeted: "Very concerned by reports of shelling in #Goma and upstart of violence. Vital that tensions are reduced quickly. Congolese officials said five civilians in the city died in the shelling on Friday. An M23 spokesman told the BBC it had not attacked the city, blaming the army for provoking the fighting.