Hutu rebels resume attacks in the northwest

Hutu rebels last week broke 18 months of relative peace by carrying out an attack in the northwest from the neighbouring DRC. A western diplomat in Rwanda said up to 15 people were killed in the attack. "This is significant in the sense that the insurgents carried out a surgical operation and retreated across the border in an orderly manner. Maybe we are saying the renewal of fighting in that area," he added. Emmanuel Ndahiro, special adviser to President Paul Kagame, played down the attack. "This shows that these people are operating as bandits, not an organised force. This cannot be termed as a sign of renewed fighting in the northwest," Ndahiro told IRIN. Hutu militias and ex-Forces armees rwandaises (FAR) troops have been increasingly infiltrating Gisenyi and Ruhengeri prefectures in recent weeks, targeting children to recruit them into their ranks to fight the Rwandan government, humanitarian sources stated.