Seven members of former president Andre Kolingba’s opposition Rassemblement democratique centrafricain (RDC) party were killed last week by unidentified armed men in the eastern city of Kembe, some 450 km from Bangui, diplomatic and media sources said. Those killed included an army lieutenant, the head of the local gendarmerie and a vice-president of the RDC youth movement, but the motive for the killings remained unclear. The bodies were dumped in neighbouring towns and villages, one source told IRIN. “Troops are being sent in Kembe and Dimbi today to protect the civilians from this new wave of acts of banditry,” Defence Minister Jean-Jacques Demafouth said on state radio on Monday.
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