The Second Congo war was a major African continental war that began in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1998, and involved nine different African countries. Zambia was not a belligerent in this military engagement, but sought to facilitate peace and an end to the fighting. Representatives from various international organizations such as the United Nations, met on 21–27 June 1999 in Lusaka in order to draft a resolution to the conflict. The ceasefire agreement set to end the fighting, deploy peacekeeping forces and release prisoners of war on both sides of the fighting. Heads of state from Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Namibia, Rwanda, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe convened in Lusaka, Zambia on 10 July 1999 to sign the Lusaka Ceasefire Agreement. Ultimately hostilities continued despite the passage of the Peace Agreement, and the official fighting did not resolve itself until 2003.