SADC brigade to 'impose force'

Business Day reports that during hastily convened talks in Maputo on the Congo crisis, SADC secretary-general Tomaz Salamao said its 4 000-strong force would be given the power 'to engage with whoever is trying to destabilise the situation in the eastern part of Congo'. The report notes the mandate is in stark contrast to that of UN forces in the Congo, who can shoot only if attacked. About 17 000 UN peacekeepers were criticised last year after M23 rebels overran the city of Goma. SADC officials said planning for the deployment was 'advanced', but they needed an official mandate from the UN Security Council, according to the report. Full Business Day report