Democratic Republic of the Congo President Laurent Kabila arrived today in Lusaka, Zambia, for a summit with five African leaders involved in the country's civil war. Leaders from Rwanda, Uganda, Angola, Namibia and Zimbabwe will participate in the summit.
     Ongoing violence in the DRC has forced the United Nations to delay deployment of 500 military observers and 5,000 troops Agence France-Presse, 14 Aug). Kabila has hindered the deployment in violation of the Lusaka peace accord, which was signed in July 1999 (Mildred Mulenga, Associated Press, 14 Aug). The present UN peacekeeping mandate is set to expire on 31 August, and it is doubtful that the world body will extend the mandate if Kabila continues to block its deployment (Mulenga, Panafrican News Agency, 14 Aug).
     "We will be trying to find a way out of this impasse," said Zambian President Frederick Chiluba, who is acting as mediator. "We want to go back to the United Nations and say you can bring us the peacekeepers and observers. We want the internal dialogue to resume so that we can give hope to the people of Congo" (BBC Online, 14 Aug).
     Analysts say if the Lusaka peace fails, a full-scale war in the DRC could resume (Reuters/CNN.com, 13 Aug).
     In other news, the UN special rapporteur on human rights in the DRC was scheduled to begin a visit to the country yesterday at the invitation of the government. Roberto Garreton is expected to hold meetings with the country's highest civil, judicial and military authorities, as well as with human rights, religious and political leaders. The visit is scheduled to run through 26 August (UN release, 11 Aug).