Congo, Rebels Sign Peace Agreement
Congo’s government signed a peace agreement with rebels at a meeting in Sun City. But the president and a rebel leader stayed away, underscoring just how difficult it will be to end the 4 1/2-year civil war.
Congo President Joseph Kabila refused to come because he wanted the pact signed at home, whereas Jean-Pierre Bemba, leader of the Congolese Liberation Movement, did not attend for “technical reasons,” his representatives said.
Mediators said the leaders’ absence was a symbolic blow to the power-sharing agreement.
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