# African countries appointed three ex-leaders to oversee a push for peace in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo while an International Criminal Court prosecutor also arrived to investigate the upsurge in violence. Former Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta, ex-Ethiopian prime minister Hailemariam Desalegn and ex-Nigerian president Olusegun Obasanjo have been appointed facilitators of a new peace process. The Rwandan-backed M23 rebels have in recent weeks seized two major cities in eastern DRC, giving the group a major foothold in the region since taking up arms again in late 2021.
Kenyatta, Desalegn and Obasanjo appointed to facilitate peace in DRC