Rivals agree to quit Congo city

Kisangani's cathedral was hit amid fighting between Ugandan and Rwandan troops

United Nations officials say both Uganda and Rwanda have agreed to resume the withdrawal of their troops from the city of Kisangani in the Demoicratic Republic of Congo.

Both sides have reneged on previous agreements to withdraw from the north-eastern city, which has been devasted by recent fierce fighting.

The UN commander of the mission in DCongo, Major-General Mountaga Diallo, made the announcement after a 50 minute meeting with Ugandan army commander Major-General Jeje Odongo in Kampala.

General Diallo also held a telephone conversation with the Rwandan army chief, Brigadier General Kayumba Nyamwasa. Both men met on Tuesday in Kigali.

The fighting in Kisangani has left a trail of damage

General Diallo said they wanted to start the process on Friday and hope it would take a week to complete.

The latest withdrawal announcement came as UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan made a dramatic new proposal to the Security Council to consider using military force to compel all foreign troops to withdraw from DR Congo.

UN sources said the secretary-general's move was an attempt to speed up last year's, so far unimplemented, Lusaka peace agreement, which called for the withdrawal of foreign forces but only after certain preconditions had been met.

Rwanda and Uganda are supporting different factions fighting to overthrow President Laurent Kabila, whose army is backed by Zimbabwean, Angolan and Namibian forces.

Sanctions threat

Mr Annan is now proposing that all foreign troops leave now - Rwandans and Ugandans first, the rest soon after.

The fighting has also left many dead

His report recommends, though without spelling it out, that the Security Council consider sanctions against any country that fails to withdraw its forces.

Security Council sources say the council is likely to adopt a resolution later this week demanding the parties live up to their past promises of peace, though whether it will include the threat of sanctions has not been agreed.

In his report, the secretary-general also played down the likelihood of further UN peacekeeping deployments in Congo, which had been planned for the next few months.

The various warring factions and nations in the Congo are due to meet at the UN later this week, but sources there are not optimistic, with one describing the Congo simply as "a mess".