Chad says Sudan airforce bombards eastern towns

Oct 28, 2006 (N’DJAMENA) — Chad on Saturday accused Sudan’s air force of bombarding four towns along its eastern frontier and said its armed forces were ready to repel further attacks.

President Idriss Deby’s government said Sudan on Friday bombed the towns of Bahai, Tine, Karyari and Bamina, destroying homes and sowing panic among residents. It did not give any information on casualties.

“The government expects the African Union … and the United Nations to condemn this bombardment of peaceful Chadian citizens and for them to work to stop the repeated Sudanese attacks against Chad,” a statement from the government spokesman Hourmadji Moussa Doumgor said.

“In the face of this escalation of Sudanese aggression, all necessary steps have been taken to permit security and defence forces to carry out their responsibilities,” he added.

The accusation came only days after Chad accused Sudan of backing an incursion this week by a heavily-armed rebel convoy deep into its territory.

The rebels of the newly-formed Union of Forces for Democracy and Development (UFDD) briefly seized two towns as they penetrated into central Chad, before retreating eastward. The government says they have sought refuge in Sudan.

(Reuters)