Democratic Republic of the Congo
Historical Chronology

13 April 2010

Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of MONUC Alan Doss briefed the Council in an open debate. Closed consultations were held after the briefing. 

12 - 18 April 2010

The Secretary-General’s Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict Margot Wallström visited the DRC.

Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of MONUC Alan Doss briefed MONUC troop- and police-contributing countries in a meeting of Security Council experts held in private.

4 April 2010

Enyele insurgents attacked the governor’s residence and the national assembly before temporarily taking the airport in Mbandaka, the capital of Equateur province.  The FARDC with MONUC in support regained control of the airport on 5 April.  The fighting reportedly led to the deaths of seven Congolese soldiers, 3 policemen, 21 rebels, 2 civilians and three MONUC officers.  Inter-communal clashes over the control of fishing points in Dongo has led to the internal and cross-border displacement of nearly 200,000 people since late October  2009. 

23 March 2010

An Arria entitled "Support to institutional capacity building in DRC: challenges of consolidating rule of law and security sector reform." was held at the political coordinator level.  Presentations were made by the Open Society Institute, International Crisis Group, International Federation for Human Rights and the EU Special Envoy for the Great Lakes region, Ambassador Roland Van de Geer. 

18 March 2010   

Alain Le Roy again briefed the Council in closed sessions on his visit to the DRC.

17 March 2010

Director of the Africa II Division in the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, Raisedon Zenenga, briefed Council experts in a closed session on the outcomes of the DPKO-led technical assessment mission to the DRC.

11 - 14 March 2010

LRA rebels reportedly killed at least 11 civilians and 8 troops in attacks in Orientale Province.

5 March 2010

Head of UN Peacekeeping, Alain Le Roy, briefed the Council in a closed session following his visit to Kinshasa and discussions with the government on the reconfiguration of MONUC.

26 February 2010

MONUC and the FARDC launched joint operations under Operation Amani Leo to protect civilians and to eliminate the threat of the Rwandan Hutu rebel FDLR and other armed groups in North and South Kivu provinces. 

22 - 5 March 2010

A technical assessment mission (TAM) was dispatched to the DRC to determine the modalities for the reconfiguration of the mandate of MONUC, in particular the critical tasks which need to be accomplished before MONUC can envisage drawdown without triggering a relapse into insecurity. The TAM's findings are contained in S/2010/164.

19 February 2010   

DRC President Joseph Kabila reshuffled his cabinet, changing twenty posts. No posts were allocated to former rebel groups whose units have been integrated into the national army.

18 February 2010   

Council experts were briefed by the Department of Peacekeeping Operations ahead of the Council's technical assessment mission to the DRC.

16 February 2010

MONUC officials briefed Council experts in a closed meeting on the Integrated Strategic Framework (ISF) and MONUC’s protection strategy. MONUC Force Commander Lieutenant General Babacar Gaye, briefed Troop-Contributing Countries (TCCs). 

2 February 2010

The Secretary-General appointed European Commission Vice-President Margot Wallström as his Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict.

7 January 2010

 Thomas Lubanga Dyilo’s defence began at the ICC. (Lubanga faces two counts of war crimes: enlisting and conscripting child soldiers and using them in hostilities in the DRC.)

December 2009

The Ugandan rebel Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) reportedly killed 83 civilians in the Haut-Uélé district of Orientale province.

23 December 2009

The Council adopted resolution 1906 which reprioritised MONUC's focus onto protection of civilians and addressed in detail violations of international law.

24 November 2009

A trial against two former Congolese rebel leaders for crimes allegedly committed by their militias in eastern DRC in 2003 began in the Hague at the International Criminal Court.

17 November 2009

The German authorities arrested two FDLR leaders, Ignace Murwanashyaka and Straton Musoni, on suspicion of crimes against humanity and war crimes committed in eastern DRC

16 December 2009

The Secretary-General’s Special Representative and head of MONUC, Alan Doss, briefed the Council.

15 November 2009

The US provided $17 million to support Kinshasa in its efforts to end sexual violence against women.

2 November 2009

Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Alain Le Roy visited the DRC including North Kivu, South Kivu and Orientale provinces in eastern DRC.

27 October 2009

Rebels from the FDLR ambushed a civilian vehicle in Rutshuru, North Kivu, killing ten civilians.

20 September 2009

Grégoire Ndahimana, a high-level FDLR figure indicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda for his role in the 1994 genocide, was handed over to the court following his arrest in eastern DRC by the Congolese army on 10 August. 

7 September 2009

Two UN reports on human rights violations carried out both by the Congolese army and rebel groups in the eastern DRC were issued by the UN Joint Human Rights Office.

4 September 2009

MONUC reported the desertion of hundreds of former rebels who had been integrated into the Congolese army. Renegades cited dissatisfaction with salaries and assigned military ranks.

3 September 2009

The International Criminal Court’s Appeal Chamber decided that Jean-Pierre Bemba, a former Congolese vice-president and opposition leader, charged with having committed war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Central African Republic, should remain in custody ahead of his trial.

6 August 2009

President Joseph Kabila of the DRC met his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame in Goma, the provincial capital of North Kivu. The meeting resulted in pledges by both leaders to continue their joint efforts to address the destabilising presence of the FDLR in the DRC.

10 July 2009

The Council issued a press statement in which it "undertook to continue to monitor progress" by the Congolese authorities to address impunity in the national security forces.

10 July 2009

The Council was briefed  in an open meeting by Alan Doss, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative in the DRC and the head of MONUC.

15 June 2009

The ICC confirmed that the former Congolese Vice-President Jean-Pierre Bemba would face charges relating to the actions of his former rebel Movement for the Liberation of Congo (Mouvement de Libération du Congo, or MLC) troops in the Central African Republic in 2002 and 2003.

A Congolese military court handed down thirty-year sentences to five militia fighters, found guilty of rape and other sexual crimes, and ordered them to pay financial damages to more than 135 female victims.

14 to 21 May 2009

UN Security Council members visited the DRC as part of a mission to Africa.

7 May 2009

Congolese parliamentarians adopted a law granting amnesty to militias in the east of the country, as part of the process to bring peace to provinces of North and South Kivu. The amnesty covers acts of war committed since 2003 but not war crimes, nor does the amnesty legislation apply to crimes committed by foreign rebel groups.

14 to 21 April 2009

The Secretary-General's Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict, Radhika Coomaraswamy, visited DRC to assess the situation of children in the eastern conflict areas. 

The Congolese government and the rebel National Congress for the Defence of the People (Congrés national pour la defense du peuple or CNDP) signed a key political and security agreement in Goma.

Former Mai Mai militia commander Gédéon Kyungu Mutanga and twenty other Mai Mai combatants were convicted by a Congolese military court of crimes including those against humanity.  The court also ruled that the DRC government had civil liability for its failure to disarm the Mai Mai and awarded damages to victims.

The Council’s DRC Sanctions Committee added four individuals to its travel ban and assets freeze list: Callixte Mbarushimana, Stanislas Nzeyimana, Pacifique Ntawunguka, and Leopold Mujyambere.  In an important development, the reasons for listing the last three included the abduction and sexual abuse of girls and the recruitment and use of child soldiers.

The joint action with Rwanda against the rebel Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (Forces démocratiques de libération du Rwanda or FDLR) in eastern DRC ended. Rwandan troops withdrew at the end of February, and the Ugandan army commenced withdrawal on 16 March.

The Secretary-General wrote to the Council (S/2009/105) to inform it about the recently revised concept of operations and rules of engagement for MONUC. 

Following a round of consultations with concerned parties in Goma, Olusegun Obasanjo, indicated that talks will resume soon between the Congolese government and the National Congress for the Defense of the People (CNDP).

UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, John Holmes, visited the DRC to assess the humanitarian situation in country.  

A MONUC disarmament, demobilisation, repatriation, resettlement and reintegration (DDRRR) team discovered that some 150 Rwanda Hutu ex-combatants, who had voluntarily disarmed in July 2008, had fled their camp in Kasiski 200 kilometres north of Goma.

MONUC accepted an invitation to second staff to the headquarters of the operation and announced its willingness to provide other assistance (including monitoring and mentoring) to the joint military operation as well as to help with the reintegration of Nkunda’s Congrés national pour la defense du peuple, or CNDP troops and repatriation to Rwanda of FDLR members. 

The UN Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide briefed the Council in a private discussion following his visit to DRC in late 2008. 

The Secretary-General wrote to the Council informing it about difficulties being encountered in ongoing attempts to secure additional troops and capacities for MONUC.

26 January 2009

The trial of Thomas Lubanga, a former Congolese militia leader, opened. He is accused of recruiting child soldiers and is the first defendant to appear before the ICC since its inception.

23 January 2009

The Rwandan authorities detained Nkunda, the CNDP leader. The DRC immediately requested his extradition on the grounds that he was Congolese and had committed crimes in the  DRC.

20 January 2009

Rwandan troops crossed the border with DRC consent to undertake a joint operation with the DRC forces against the FDLR.  

12-15 January 2009

Hearings were held by ICC judges on charges of crimes against humanity and war crimes against former Congolese rebel warlord Jean-Pierre Bemba.

Early January

One of the Congrés national pour la defense du peuple's (CNDP) main commanders, Jean-Bosco Ntaganda—an ICC indictee—challenged Nkunda’s continued leadership of the CNDP and defected to cooperate with DRC government forces.

The Council, in renewing MONUC’s mandate, extended authorisation of an increase in troop levels, and clarified the mandate, stressing protection of civilians as top priority. The Council also expanded sanctions to target individuals impeding humanitarian assistance or supporting armed groups operating in eastern DRC through illicit trade of natural resources.

Peace talks resumed, but were suspended again after four days, having failed to produce any agreement. The rebels declined to recommit to the November ceasefire declaration. 

Forces from the DRC, Uganda, and southern Sudan launched a joint military operation against Uganda’s Lord’s Resistance Army in eastern DRC, destroying the main LRA camp in the area.

The governments of Rwanda and the DRC agreed on a joint military operational plan against the FDLR, or Forces Démocratiques de la Libération du Rwanda.

Direct talks facilitated by Olusegun Obasanjo the Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for the Great Lakes Region and former Tanzanian President Benjamin Mkapa, representing the African Union and the International Conference on the Great Lakes, were convened in Nairobi in early December between representatives of the DRC government and CNDP. Neither Congolese President Joseph Kabila nor CNDP leader Laurent Nkunda were present. Other rebel groups were invited, but did not attend.  Talks were suspended after four days.

At a special session on the human rights situation in eastern DRC, the Human Rights Council adopted a resolution expressing concern at the deteriorating human rights and humanitarian situation in North Kivu.

The UN Secretary-General submitted recommendations to the Security Council on MONUC’s future mandate and reconfiguration.

Security Council adopted a resolution authorising a temporary increase of MONUC’s troop size by up to 3085 additional personnel, in line with recommendations made by the Secretariat on 3 October.

The ICC decided to proceed with the trial of former Congolese rebel leader Thomas Lubanga accused of using child soldiers.

16 November 2008

Obasanjo met Nkunda, who pledged to observe a ceasefire and announced that his forces would retire from the frontlines to create a zone of separation to allow in humanitarian aid. 

9 November 2008

The Executive Secretary of the Southern African Development Community indicated that it would send military advisers to help the DRC "if and when necessary".

7 November 2008

The Secretary-General and Obasanjo, attended a summit in Nairobi with key regional players including presidents Joseph Kabila of the DRC and Paul Kagame of Rwanda and Jakaya Kikwete of Tanzania (president of the AU) to deliberate on the DRC problem. 

7 November 2008

The Special Adviser of the Secretary-General on the Prevention of Genocide, Francis Deng, issued a statement on the DRC expressing concern about the recent escalation of violence.

4 November 2008

The UN Secretary-General appointed former Nigerian president Olusegun  Obasanjo as special envoy for the DRC.

3 November 2008

The EU held a ministerial meeting on the DRC. The possibility of sending a temporary EU multinational force to bolster MONUC did not gain support.

1 November 2008

DRC government forces clashed with LRA fighters in Dungu resulting in the deaths of three government soldiers and the LRA abducting 36 boys and 21 girls.

Late October 2008

Renegade General Laurent Nkunda announced an immediate ceasefire.

27 and 28 October 2008

Congolese protesters attacked the UN's headquarters in Goma over what they saw as insufficient protection for them and support to Congolese government forces against the offensive by Nkunda’s forces.  UN peacekeepers were reported to have deployed to battle the rebels, using UN helicopter gunships and ground forces against the rebels in Rumangabo. 

27 October 2008

Lieutenant General Vicente Diaz de Villegas y Herrería of Spain indicated that he would relinquish his post as force commander for MONUC, citing personal reasons.  Brigadier General Ishmeel Ben Quartey of Ghana was named to Acting Force Commander.

26 October 2008

The UN accused Nkunda’s soldiers of firing rockets at two UN vehicles, injuring several peacekeepers. The accusation was denied by a spokesman for Nkunda.

25 October 2008

Nkunda’s forces captured a major Congolese army base at Rumangabo and the headquarters of Virunga National Park.  

13 October 2008

MONUC freed 13 children from forced recruitment by illegal armed groups in North Kivu. The mission was said to have come under fire from Nkunda’s forces during the operation, compelling the peacekeepers to return fire, wounding one rebel fighter in the process.

10 and 11 October 2008

A new rebel coalition, the Front Populaire pour la Justice au Congo (FPJC) opened fire on the outskirts of Bunia in north-east DRC,  causing local residents to halt everyday business. 

10 October 2008

DRC reiterated its 8 October request to the Council with photographs of what it described as “irrefutable proof of Rwanda’s involvement in the recent clashes in North Kivu.” 

10 October 2008

Congolese President Joseph Kabila made a televised appeal for the population in the eastern part of the country to take up arms against Nkunda.

10 October 2008

MONUC indicated  that Nkunda’s forces had been persuaded to withdraw from the Rumangabo national armybase, with, however,  captured arms and supplies.

8 October 2008

The Ambassador of the DRC to the UN requested Council action to address “acts of aggression on the part of Rwanda” in relation to recent movements of Rwandan regular army troops into DRC territory to fight alongside Nkunda as well as a build up of Rwandan forces along the latter’s side of its border with the DRC. Rwanda denied the claims.

7 October 2008

Forces loyal to Nkunda overran the Rumangabo national army base, resulting in the displacement of thousands. Retreating government troops abandoned their weapons

6 October 2008

The Prosecutor of the ICC, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, called for renewed efforts by all actors, including regional and international organisations, to support and work together with the DRC and Uganda to arrest LRA leader Joseph Kony and his top commanders.

29 September 2008

During clashes between the DRC national army and Nkunda’s forces in North Kivu, Nkunda called for a rebellion against the Congolese government to liberate the country.  

17 September 2008

The Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) launched attacks in the Orientale province of Northeastern DRC, displacing thousands from their homes and kidnapping 90 children. 

7 July 2008

The ICC reversed its 2 July decision to release Thomas Lubanga Dyilo, leader of the rebel militia Union des patriotes congolais, accused of recruiting and using child soldiers, saying that he should remain in custody until a decision was made on the appeal by the prosecution.

21 June 2008

The Pact on Security, Stability and Development in the Great Lakes Region entered into force on 21 June following its ratification by eight of the 11 core countries of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR).

24 April 2008

The security Council's DRC Sanctions Committee decided to remove the name of deceased Congolese businessman Kisoni Kambale from its consolidated assets freeze and travel ban list, but decided to maintain the assets freeze imposed on entities associated with Kambale, Butembo Airlines and Congocom Trading House.

19 June 2008

MONUC reported that while western DRC appeared calm, several ceasefire violations had occurred in eastern DRC. In North Kivu clashes continued between the government army and the FDLR Rwandan Hutu militia.

13 June 2008

MONUC released a report accusing the Congolese national police of killing prisoners, destroying 200 buildings and looting homes in a violent crackdown on a separatist sect in late February in which at least 100 people died.

11 June 2008

The ICC suspended its first scheduled trial (of Thomas Lubanga, a militia leader charged with conscripting child soldiers in eastern Congo) after it appeared that the prosecution had withheld significant exculpatory evidence from the defence.

7 - 8 June 2008

The Council undertook a mission to the DRC as part of a broader visit to a number of African countries. The mission had questions about the militia disarmament process, the restructuring of the military and the prosecution of human rights violators from the army and the police.

24 May 2008

Jean-Pierre Bemba, former vice-president and leader of the main opposition party, the Mouvement de Libération du Congo, was arrested in Belgium on the basis of an ICC warrant.

24 April 2008

The DRC Sanctions Committee removed the name of Congolese businessman Kisoni Kambale, who is reported dead, from its consolidated assets freeze and travel ban list, though they maintained the assets freeze imposed on entities associated with Kambale: Butembo Airlines and Congocom Trading House.

22 February 2008

The Congolese-Tutsi leader of the rebel National Congress for the Defence of the People (CNDP), renegade General Laurent Nkunda, suspended the CNDP's participation in the peace agreement reached between the DRC government and rebels operating in eastern DRC.

6 February 2008

Congolese authorities arrested and transferred to the ICC Mathieu Ngudjolo Chui, a former militia leader charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity.

23 January 2008

Peace agreement is signed between the DRC government and armed rebels groups (including Nkunda's forces and the Mai Mai). 

6 to 22 January 2008

Peace conference was held in Goma, capital of North Kivu, between government and armed rebel groups in the eastern provinces of DRC.

Early December 2007

DRC government forces launch major military offensive against those of renegade General Laurent Nkunda in North Kivu.

9 November 2007

An agreement, facilitated by the UN, was reached between the DRC and Rwanda.  Kinshasa resolved to forcibly disarm and hand over to Kigali members of Hutu militia groups operating in eastern DRC suspected of responsibility for the 1994 Rwanda genocide.

8 November 2007

UN Development Programme coordinator in Ituri, Gustavo Gonzalez, stated that disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration of rebel forces and militias in Ituri was proceeding well.

6 November 2007

Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General for the DRC Ross Mountain emphasised that the main perpetrators of sexual violence were members of the FARDC, police and militias.

3-5 November 2007

Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs, Haile Menkerios, travelled to the DRC and Rwanda.    

3 November 2007

16 former military commanders from Ituri region and 300 troops surrendered to MONUC for reintegration into Forces armées de la République Democratique du Congo (FARDC).

Militia commander, Kibamba Kasereka, leader of the Forces patriotiques Mayi-Mayi and 29 of his men surrendered to MONUC peacekeepers in North Kivu.

25 October 2007

Special Rapporteur of the Human Rights Council on violence against women, Yakin Ertürk highlighted DRC's particularly acute problems, in an annual report.

18 October 2007

Germain Katanga, former leader of an ituri armed group (Forces de resistance patriotique en Ituri, or FRPI) was handed over to the International Criminal Court (ICC).

The Secretary-General's Special Representative for the DRC, William Lacy Swing, and MONUC Force Commander General Babacar Gaye met DRC President Joseph Kabila to discuss the continued violence in North Kivu. 

14 October 2007

Renegade General Nkunda rejected the government's ultimatum for stopping hostilities and integrating his forces into the army.

8 October 2007

Renegade General Nkunda declared the truce nullified in the face of continuing violent clashes with government forces in eastern DRC.  He, however, proposed a truce two days later after suffering heavy losses and offered 500 of his troops for demobilisation.

26 September 2007

Six people were killed in a gunfight between Ugandan and DRC troops near Lake Albert, marking the second time in two months that fighting had broken out between troops from the two countries. 

6 September 2007

UN mediators announced a ceasefire between the government army and Nkunda's forces.

27 August 2007

A meeting of officials from Burundi, the DRC, Rwanda and Uganda was held in Kigali to consider regional security concerns.

The Council adopted resolution 1771 modified the arms embargo, exempting the government from the embargo regarding arms and technical training and assistance being used by DRC army and police units, except in the districts of North and South Kivu and Ituri where only technical training and assistance was exempted. 

Bemba's leave of absence from the Senate expired, but he refused to return to the DRC from Portugal because of lack of security guarantees by the government.

In a presidential statement (S/PRST/2007/28), the Council expressed deep concern at the deteriorating security situation in the east of the DRC and urged a political solution to the crisis. In an interesting development, it provided specific policy guidance relevant to the use of force if necessary.

The body of a prominent politician, Floribert Chui Bin Kositi, provincial secretary of the Congolese Rally for Democracy (RCD), was discovered in Goma, capital of North Kivu.  His body was reported to bear marks evidencing a violent attack. 

June 2007

Serge Maheshe, a broadcaster with the UN-backed Radio Okapi, was shot dead.

Mid-April 2007

Bemba flew to Portugal and the Congolese public prosecutor reportedly requested the senate to lift Bemba's immunity.

29 March 2007

The Council sanctioned two individuals and five entities found to have either violated the arms embargo or refused to disarm.

Late March 2007

Heavy fighting between supporters of President Joseph Kabila and opposition leader and Senator Jean-Pierre Bemba erupted after a government ultimatum that Bemba's supporters disarm. MONUC intervened and quelled the fighting. About 200 of Bemba's fighters reportedly agreed to lay down arms and integrate into the army.

Supporters of President Joseph Kabila and Jean-Pierre Bemba clashed in western DRC, leaving 77 dead. In eastern DRC, fighting between Congolese armed forces and the Forces démocratiques pour la libération du Rwanda (FDLR) flared, leading to the displacement of 10,000 persons.

On his first official trip to the DRC, the Secretary-General visited Kinshasa and sought to allay concerns about imminent cutbacks on MONUC's size.

The new senate was elected with the majority going to Kabila's alliance. Former presidential candidate Jean-Pierre Bemba did secure a seat. 

The second Great Lakes summit took place in Nairobi. The DRC, Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda and Tanzania signed a security, stability and development pact, with reports of agreement on a security action plan to disarm militias and to "refrain from, prevent and punish" serious crimes.

Late November 2006

Fighting broke out in the eastern province of North Kivu, pitting government forces against militias loyal to dissident General Laurent Nkunda, displacing 150,000. After MONUC troops intervened, the militias seemed to retreat.

26 November 2006

The Supreme Court confirmed President Joseph Kabila's victory in the presidential elections.

27 November 2006

The Supreme Court decided against Bemba's complaints, maintaining the provisional results.

18 November 2006

Jean-Pierre Bemba's coalition made several accusations of fraud, filing a challenge before the Supreme Court.

29 October 2006

Results of the  presidential elections indicated Joseph Kabila's victory with 58 percent of the votes.

23 September 2006

The candidates agreed to make Kinshasa a weapons-free zone and to the cantonment of their respective militias. 

The new national assembly was inaugurated.

The results of the national assembly polls showed that no party won a majority of seats.

The International Criminal Court Prosecutor formally charged Ituri militia leader Thomas Lubanga with recruiting child soldiers.

Final results of the first round of presidential elections were posted.

The Council strengthened the sanctions regime.

Parliamentary polls and the first round of presidential elections took place.

A Council mission visited the DRC ahead of the elections.

9 March 2006

The electoral law was adopted

17 March 2006

Thomas Lubanga was surrendered by Congolese authorities to the International Criminal Court for crimes in Ituri.

10 March 2006

Candidate registration for the June elections began.

17 February 2006

The new DRC constitution was promulgated.

27 January 2006

The Council held a ministerial-level debate on the Great Lakes.

23 January 2006

Eight UN peacekeepers were killed in the DRC in combat with the Ugandan rebel Lord's Resistance Army.

21 December 2005

The Council strengthened the sanctions regime.

The Forces Armées de la Républic Démocratique du Congo began a military offensive against Mayi-Mayi rebels in Katanga.

A list of individuals subject to targeted sanctions was adopted.

October 2005

The DRC and Uganda discussed the Lord's Resistance Army issue under the Tripartite Plus One Joint Commission.

16 September 2005

The Tripartite Plus One Commission adopted a statement on the 30 September deadline for foreign troops to leave the DRC

September 2005

Lord's Resistance Army elements entered the DRC. Ugandan President Museveni threatened to intervene and Kinshasa set a deadline for all foreign groups to disarm.

Voter registration began.

May 2005

The Council expanded the arms embargo to include any recipient within the entire country's territory, and imposed a travel ban and assets freeze.

March 2004

The Council established a Sanctions Committee and a Group of Experts.

July 2003

The Council imposed an arms embargo in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

December 2002

The Global and All Inclusive Agreement was signed.

April 2002

The Sun City Agreement was signed between some of the Congolese warring parties.

January 2001

Joseph Kabila was sworn in as president after the assassination of his father, President Laurent-Desiré Kabila.

December 1999

The Council established the UN Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC). 

July 1999

The Lusaka Ceasefire Agreement was signed.

August 1998

Congolese insurgents, Uganda and Rwanda battle against President Laurent-Desiré Kabila.

May 1997

Laurent-Desiré Kabila was sworn in as president after a Rwandan and Ugandan-backed rebellion.

1994-1996

Rwandan Hutu extremists carried out attacks against Rwanda from Zaire.

1994

After the Rwandan genocide, Rwandan Hutu extremists fled to eastern Zaire.