A summit of African leaders to address the crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has directed army chiefs to meet within five days and "provide technical direction on an immediate and unconditional ceasefire". The meeting, which came to a close in Tanzania YESTERDAY, brought together the leaders of the eight-nation East African Community (EAC) and 16-member Southern African Development Community (SADC).  The first-ever summit of both Eastern and Southern African blocs called for the withdrawal of "uninvited foreign armed forces from the territory of the DRC" and emphasized their commitment to safeguarding Congolese sovereignty. It also called for an opening of humanitarian corridors to evacuate the dead and injured and urged the M23 rebels to stop their offensive to help address the dire humanitarian crisis. 

To take a deeper look at the outcomes of the SADC/EAC summit, Bongiwe Zwane spoke to David Monyae, Associate Professor of Political Science and International Relations at UJ and Thomas Mandrup, an Associate Professor with the Royal Danish Defence College and Security Institute for Governance and Leadership in Africa at Stellenbosch University and Dr. Kingsley Makhubela, Risk Analyst and Former South African  Diplomat