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Mouvement des Forces Democratiques de Casamance (MFDC) rebels have been accused of abducting at least 10 people during an operation last week in Casamance, according to news organisations.
A representative from Rencontre Africaine pour la defense de droit de l'homme (RADDHO), a local human rights group with a presence in Casamance, told IRIN that two soldiers belonging to the Jola ethnic group had been abducted last Thursday. One of them later escaped, he said.
"The majority of the rebels are Jola and they are not in the habit of abducting people from their own ethnic group," RADDHO said.
RFI quotes the MFDC's overall leader, Father Augustin Diamacoune Senghor, as saying that the hostage-taking could be a political act or simply banditry.
The MFDC wants the southern area of Casamance to break away from the rest of Senegal.
This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions
