23 killed in clashes in Central African Republic
October 9, 2013 (BANGUI) – A military official in the Central Africa Republic (CAR) has said 23 people were on Tuesday killed in fighting between local militias and rebels who control the country.
Gen. Mahamat Bhas said the 23 died after fighting broke out in Gaga, a remote village in the north western region of the country.
“A witness described having seen at least 40 people killed by the Seleka fighters who had begun searching for the men in town”, Mahatmat Bhas said, noting that that the dead did not include Seleka fighters.
The UN says 170,000 people had already been displaced by fighting from their villages in Ouham province.
Ouham is the home region of the former President Francois Bozize who was deposed by the Seleka rebels after a decade in power.
CAR President Michel Djotodia last month disbanded the Seleka rebel group which brought him to power.
In August United officials warned that the Central African Republic (CAR) poses a threat to peace in the Great Lakes region following the toppling of President Francois Bozize in March this year by the Seleka rebels and failure by the new government to maintain law and order in the country.
The Central Africa Republic shares borderlines with Chad, Sudan, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
(ST)