UN Security Council hails DRC peace accord

UNITED NATIONS - The UN Security Council on Sunday welcomed the signing of a UN-mediated accord aimed at ending two decades of conflict in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

The council members urged good faith of signatories and asked UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to regularly report on the implementation of the agreement and on any breaches of the commitments.

The deal, providing for the deployment of an international neutral force in the DRC, was inked in Addis Ababa at a ceremony attended by Ban and representatives from 11 African countries including the Republic of Congo, Mozambique, Rwanda, South Africa, South Sudan and Tanzania.

Discussions on the DRC resolution hit a snag at a summit of the African Union (AU) last month when member countries declined to sign a political and security framework proposed by the UN to resolve the crisis that had rendered hundreds of thousands of Congolese homeless.

Participants eventually agreed that a proposed multi-national neutral force in the DRC might be integrated into the UN peace mission in the Central African country.

The 4,000-strong neutral force under a Tanzanian commander will be a "special brigade" of the United Nations Mission for Stabilization of Congo.

In a statement, the 15-member UN Security Council also commended Ban for his engagement and the leaders of the region for their commitment to address through dialogue and cooperation the challenges the DRC and other countries of the region are facing.

Leaders of the Great Lakes region have met several times since July, three months after newly formed rebel 23 March Movement (M23) launched an insurgency in North Kivu in the east DRC.

The M23 rebels seized Goma, the capital of North Kivu province, before pulling out under regional pressure to facilitate talks late last year.

The flare has displaced more than 475,000 people and forced over 75,000 others to flee to neighboring Rwanda and Uganda.