ABSTRACT
The war in the Democratic Republic of Congo is a great tragedy affecting the bulk of central and southern Africa. The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has ceased to exist as a state in empirical terms and is in danger of becoming a huge governmental void in the heart of Africa, delineated only by the borders of its neighbours. The war is in reality a continuation of the 1996–97 rebellion against Mobutu, which in turn was directly linked to the genocide in Rwanda in 1994 and its consequences. Uganda has become involved in the DRC because of concerns over the security of its western borders. In the case of Uganda, this threat came from the Allied Democratic Forces, West Nile Bank Front and the Lord's Resistance Army, all rebel groups within Uganda. The official justifications put forward by Zimbabwe, together with its coalition allies Angola and Namibia, for intervention in DRC had no basis in international law.
