Southern African countries have agreed to deploy forces to the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo where dozens of rebel groups are fighting.
The decision was reached at a meeting of the regional body SADC, attended by several heads of state, including DR Congo’s Felix Tshisekedi.
Since December an East African regional military force has been deployed in eastern DR Congo, mainly in response to the threat posed by the M23 rebel group.
It is widely reported to be backed by Rwanda although Kigali denies it.
Since it re-launched a rebellion in late 2021 close to a million people have been displaced.