The First Congo War (1996–1997), also nicknamed Africa's First World War, was a civil war and international military conflict which took place mostly in Zaire, with major spillovers into Sudan and Uganda. The conflict culminated in a foreign invasion that replaced Zairean president Mobutu Sese Seko with the rebel leader Laurent-Désiré Kabila. Kabila's unstable government subsequently came into conflict with his allies, setting the stage for the Second Congo War in 1998–2003.
Mobutu Sese Seko, long-time dictator of Zaire
A Rwandan refugee camp in Zaire, 1994
Laurent-Désiré Kabila
Zaire, officially the Republic of Zaire, was the name of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 1971 to 1997. Zaire was located in Central Africa and was, by area, the third-largest country in Africa after Sudan and Algeria, and the 11th-largest country in the world from 1965 to 1997. With a population of over 23 million, Zaire was the most populous Francophone country in Africa. Zaire played a central role during the Cold War.
Mobutu Sese Seko, the president of Zaire from 1965 to 1997
Idi Amin, president of Uganda, visiting Mobutu in Zaire during The Shaba I Conflict in 1977
This is a 5 makuta (cinq makuta) coin from Zaire, 1977, which portrays Mobutu Sese Seko, who was the president during this time