Calm returns to Bangui as rebels retreat

Calm returned to the capital of the Central African Republic on Thursday after government forces backed by rebels from the neighbouring Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) launched a massive counteroffensive around noon local time on Wednesday against dissident forces allied to the former CAR army chief of staff, Gen Francois Bozize. Despite having saved the day, the forces of Jean-Pierre Bemba's Mouvement de liberation du Congo (MLC) rebel movement were accused of widespread looting, particularly in northern Bangui neighbourhoods that had been held by Bozize's forces. The immediate future remained ominous, however, as senior officers of Bozize's rebels told Radio France Internationale (RFI) that they would return, insisting that they had only retreated temporarily for strategic reasons. Bozize's forces withdrew along the same road by which they had approached Bangui on 25 October, leading northwards to Chad. According to military sources, they had maintained control of that route throughout their six-day assault on Bangui. The humanitarian toll remained unclear as at Thursday, with no precise or authoritative figures available of the numbers of people displaced, injured or killed. The CAR Ministry of Social Affairs has called an urgent meeting for Friday of all humanitarian organisations in Bangui in order to coordinate city-wide relief efforts and to begin to compile information on the human toll of the attempted coup. However, officials of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees warned on Wednesday that ethnic tensions in Bangui could spill over into DRC with the arrival of refugees fleeing the failed coup. Many Central Africans have been gathering at the shore of the Oubangui River trying to cross to neighbouring DRC. "We fear that the inter-ethnic fighting between the Kabas, the ethnic group of present Central African President, Ange-Felix Patasse, and the Yakomas, the group of former President Andre Kolingba, could carry over to Central African refugee camps in the DRC," Fatoumata Kaba, the UNHCR spokeswoman in Kinshasa, told IRIN. At least 3,400 Yakoma refugees from CAR, who fled during previous uprisings, are still living in the Mole refugee camp near Zongo, DRC, along the Oubangui River. Former soldiers of the CAR military belonging to the Yakomas, who have been disarmed, are located in a camp some 135 km farther south in the DRC. "These people are exiled, because they have been persecuted by the present regime. If groups of Kabas cross over together, there may be problems," Kaba said. Meanwhile, life is slowly returning to normal throughout the capital as markets began to reopen. Food prices have increased noticeably - a 15-kg bag of cassava, a staple food in CAR, has risen from 2,500 francs CFA to 4,000 francs (about US $3.88 to $6), and there is growing concern over future food security, as the northern route still held by Bozize's rebels serves as the primary conduit of food from the largely agricultural region of northern CAR. In the meantime, food supplies are being brought across the Oubangui from the DRC. Although most of the city was without electricity on Wednesday, it was widely restored on Thursday. However, the national utility company said there would be power cuts in the coming weeks in order to repair damaged equipment. The city's water supply, drawn primarily from the Oubangui River to the east, remained largely unaffected throughout the conflict. Structural damage was reported to have occurred primarily in the northern neighbourhoods of the capital that had been held by Bozize's forces. These neighbourhoods were heavily shelled by government forces and bombed by a pair of fighter jets on loan from Libya, which has had a contingent of some 200 soldiers in Bangui since a previous coup attempt in May 2001. Telephone services had been cut on Wednesday in advance of the government-led counter-offensive in order to hamper landline and mobile telephone communications among Bozize's rebels. Traffic had returned to the streets by Thursday afternoon, except for northern neighbourhoods that were still being patrolled by government forces and the MLC. Although military roadblocks were set up throughout the city to inspect vehicles, IRIN has received no reports of physical harassment or extortion of civilians. As for President Ange-Felix Patasse, he is unharmed, and, according to Radio France Internationale, had never actually left his besieged residence, contrary to earlier reports. However, Patasse's spokesman, Prosper Ndouba, who had been abducted by Bozize's men, remains a hostage of the retreating rebels. Sources close to Ndouba said he had last been seen about 26 km from Bangui, still held by Bozize's forces. In a statement read over government-owned Radio Centrafrique on Thursday afternoon, CAR Minister of State for Communication Gabriel Jean Edouard Koyambounou thanked all countries and organisations that had expressed their support during the crisis, namely, Gabon, the EU and France - the former colonial ruler of the territory now known as CAR - as well as CEMAC (Communaute Economique et Monetaire de l'Afrique Centrale), a regional grouping comprising Cameroon, CAR, Chad, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the Republic of Congo. However, no mention of military support from Libya or the MLC was made. Koyambounou said Bozize's forces had left behind numerous vehicles filled with military and communications equipment, and that these would be made available to representatives of the international community for inspection. Koyambounou asked all Central Africans to resume their normal activities on Monday. Meanwhile, CAR and Chad continued to trade accusations, with Koyambounou reiterating allegations that Bozize's forces had launched their offensive from neighbouring Chad, and Ndjamena countering that CAR has been harbouring many Chadian rebels among its military ranks. Bozize and an unknown number of his supporters fled to neighbouring Chad in November 2001 after leading an armed resistance against Bozize's arrest for questioning in relation to the failed May 2001 putsch. As for Bozize, who has claimed responsibility for the latest attempted coup, Chadian and French sources confirmed on Tuesday that he had returned from the Chadian capital, Ndjamena, to Paris. On Monday, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan called on the international community "to provide urgently the logistical and other assistance" needed to deploy to the CAR the inter-African observation force agreed to by the leaders of CEMAC at their summit earlier in October in Gabon. Set to comprise 300 to 350 troops, the force would be composed of forces from Gabon, Cameroon, the Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea and Mali. Its three main tasks would be to ensure Patasse's safety, participate in the restructuring of the country's armed forces, and ensure security on the border with Chad. Speaking on Africa No 1 Radio on Tuesday, Gabonese Foreign Minister Jean Ping said that the 2 October Libreville accord was still valid. He added that the first Gabonese peacekeeping contingent of 150 men was due to arrive within the week. However, he did not mention whether present fighting would affect these plans. Since the election of Patasse in 1993, the CAR has suffered repeated internal armed crises. Additionally, repeated clashes attributed to Bozize's supporters based in Chad and to the alleged Chadian rebel leader, Abdoulaye Miskine, based in CAR, have taken place along the two nations' common border since Bozize and soldiers loyal to him fled to Chad in November 2001. It had been hoped that the CAR-Chad conflict had been ended by the Libreville summit. Under the Libreville accord, Miskine was due to be relocated to the West African country of Togo, while Bozize was later granted asylum in France. Regional analysts now fear that this latest crisis could lead to a rapid deterioration in relations between Chad and CAR.