UN peacekeepers have deployed in the west of Central African Republic following surprise attacks by powerful armed groups involved in “a deliberate attempt to disrupt” upcoming elections in one of the world’s poorest and most troubled nations.
The UN mission to the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) said it deployed forces on Friday following an offensive by the 3R, Patriotic Movement for Central Africa (MPC), and “anti-Balaka” militias.
“The mission emphasises that these coordinated attacks in well-identified areas involve a deliberate attempt to disrupt the elections,” said the mission, which has 11,500 peacekeepers in the country.
The militias have accused President Faustin Archange Touadera of seeking to fix the planned legislative and presidential elections – due to take place on December 27 – and have warned of a violent response.
According to humanitarian and UN sources, armed groups have seized several localities along routes serving the capital Bangui, which is now threatened by a blockade.
“Reinforcement of the MINUSCA resources, including with air assets, is a response to the violence committed by these armed groups and which also affected Yaloke and Bozoum,” towns just over 200 kilometres from Bangui, killing two members of government forces, the UN mission said. AFP
In New York, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the escalating violence and called on all sides to work towards ensuring conditions conducive to the holding of credible and peaceful elections, his spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement.
The UN chief called on all parties to “resolve their differences peacefully… in the interest of the Central African people who have for too long suffered from violence and instability.”
Tensions are very high in the CAR, with the government on Wednesday accusing former president Francois Bozize of a “plan to destabilize the country,” while the opposition says it fears massive electoral fraud.
Bozize, who recently returned after years in exile, has been barred from running in the election by the country’s top court as he had been sought in a international arrest warrant filed by the CAR on charges including murder, arbitrary arrest and torture. AFP