Since gaining independence from Belgium in 1960, the Democratic Republic of Congo has faced crippling unrest. Following a 32-year reign seized by Mobutu Sese Seko, a subsequent overthrow by Laurent Kabila's rebellion in 1997 and the next year, an insurrection by rebels that sparked a war affecting six other nations, the DR Congo held its first democratic elections in July 2006.

Now following those elections, the DR Congo is on the brink of signing a historic peace treaty between the new government and rebel dissident groups. Sponsored by the United States, the European Union, and the African Union, the deal aims to still violence around the town of Goma, where nearly a half-million people have been driven from their homes. The deal includes amnesty from the most severe charges for rebel groups in exchange for an immediate ceasefire. Estimates suggest that 5 million people have died in the last decade due to this conflict.

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