Gunmen kill 13 in village in Central African Republic

2023-08-02 19:20:02

NIAMEY, Niger (AP) — Gunmen killed 13 people and wounded two in a village in the northern Central African Republic, authorities said Wednesday.

The incident occurred on Tuesday in the village of Diki near the border with Chad, said Ousmane Youssef, the local tribal chief.

A group of armed men stormed into the village and called a meeting with residents and local leaders, before shooting them to death at point-blank range, he said.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, but in March the UN condemned the attack on another village by a rebel group called the Coalition of Patriots for Change.

“We do not know the real motives of the rebels who carried out this act of unusual intensity. This is the time when the government should help us put an end to the rebels who are undermining security in the area,” said Babikir Hallasan, deputy mayor of the nearest large town.

The Central African Republic has suffered from internal fighting since 2013, when Muslim Seleka rebels seized power and ousted President Francois Bozize. Mainly Christian militias then counterattacked, targeting civilians in the streets. The United Nations, which has a peacekeeping force in the country, estimates that the violence has killed thousands of people and displaced more than a million, a fifth of the country’s population.

Sultan Ibrahim Kamoun Senoussi, a local leader, said the assailants have not been identified, but the armed forces have been ordered to pursue them.

In March, the UN condemned the attack on another village by the Coalition of Patriots for Change, an alliance of Christian and Muslim groups operating on the border between the Central African Republic and Chad.

The tragedy in Diki comes following the Central African Republic held a referendum on a new constitution that would expand executive powers and allow President Faustin-Archange Touadéra to run for a third term. Rebel groups, including the Coalition of Patriots for Change, boycotted the referendum and threatened to attack voters.

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