33 die in army-rebel fighting

At least 33 people died following fighting between the army and rebels in Gordil, northeastern Central African Republic, a United Nations official has said. Aissatou Toure, the spokeswoman for the UN Office in the Central African Republic, BONUCA, said of the dead, 20 were rebels and 13 soldiers - 11 from the CAR army and two Chadian soldiers serving with the peacekeeping force of the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa, known as CEMAC. Government officials said the fighting occurred early Monday after Chadian rebels attacked CAR and CEMAC troop positions in town of Gordil, on the border with Sudan. In a radio broadcast on Wednesday, the CAR Defence Ministry appealed to the international community to intervene in order to stop what it termed "aggression against the CAR by foreign armed groups." However, a major in the CAR military, who declined to be named, blamed the fighting on a rebellion that is growing in Vakaga Province. The major said CAR rebels, backed by Chadian troops opposed to the current Chadian administration, as well as Sudanese mercenaries, perpetrated the attacks. The major said CAR and Chadian rebels had teamed up to carry out attacks in both countries. Reports from other sources indicate that civilians caught up in fighting have hidden in the bush. However, although fighting has stopped, civilians have still not returned to their homes. On 3 June, a rebel attack in the area left three people dead - two employees of the Ministry of Environment and the region's deputy Member of Parliament. Following rebel attacks in April on N'Djamena, the Chadian capital, nearly 70 CAR rebels fighting alongside their Chadian counterparts were arrested and sent back to the CAR capital, Bangui. The government said hundreds of Chadian rebels were stranded in northeastern CAR in the town of Tiringul and around Gordil and Birao, the capital of Vakaga. The escalation in fighting in the northeast followed the incursion of suspected foreign troops in the country in late April. A statement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said a transport aircraft landed in Tiringul and offloaded unidentified troops and material on 25 April. The next day another aircraft arrived in Tiringul loaded with troops and military equipment. The incident prompted the government to close the Sudan border at the time. Military officers in Bangui said that 350 foreign troops were in northeastern CAR where they had seized control of a small airport. The national identities are still unknown.