Rebels in Central African Republic supplied with increasingly sophisticated weapons, mercenaries

In a statement on Friday, the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR), a regional body of 12 member states, noted that rebel forces in the Central African Republic (CAR) are being supplied with increasingly sophisticated weapons and other means to carry out their actions against the populations and legitimate authorities of the country.

Angolan President João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço who is the Acting President of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) on Friday, January 29, convened a mini Summit on the political and security situation in the Central African Republic, in Luanda, Angola.

Other Presidents who attended were Denis Sassou-Nguesso, of the Republic of the Congo, Marshall Idriss Déby Itno of Chad, and Faustin Archange Touadera of the Central African Republic. General Ibrahim Gabir of the Sovereignty Council of Sudan represented his government while Rwanda was also represented by Dr. Vincent Biruta, its Minister of Foreign Affairs. The Heads of State and Government congratulated Touadera for his reelection on December 27, 2020.

Serious threat to security, stability in sub-region

They analyzed the situation in the Central African Republic and noted that, among others, there is a worsening security situation, as a consequence of the persistent military actions led by rebel forces.

They also noted that there is a strong presence of mercenaries in the rebel forces; and that the current situation in the Central African Republic represents a serious threat to security and stability in the sub-region and especially in the neighboring countries of the Central African Republic.

The ICGLR thus called for a ceasefire and urged armed groups to "disengage from the encirclement of Bangui" and allow people and goods to move freely. The Luanda Summit made the call to the rebel groups to disengage immediately from the Douala-Bangui corridor in order to allow free circulation of people and goods. The CAR army on January 24 launched an offensive in a village, about 90km from the capital, Bangui, and killed 44 rebels

Mercenaries from Chad, Sudan and the Fulani ethnic group were captured. Violence and insecurity related to the recent elections in the Central  African Republic (CAR) has forced more than 200,000 people to flee their homes in less than two months, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) said on Friday, warning that tens of thousands are facing dire living conditions.

The CAR army, backed by U.N., Russian and Rwandan troops, has been battling rebels seeking to overturn a December 27 vote in which President Touadera was declared the winner. The ICGLR and ECCAS Heads of State and Government reiterated the validity of the elections held on December 27, 2020 which proclaimed him as the elected President "and consequently, won’t allow that actors who oppose the results try to seize power by force."

"The Heads of State and Government urge all rebel forces to observe a unilateral and immediate cease-fire, to retreat from Bangui’s circle and resume their initial position," reads the ICGLR statement. The regional body will also ask the United Nations Security Council to lift an arms embargo imposed on CAR that has restricted the flow of weapons to the army since 2013.

"The Summit of Heads of State and Government mandated the acting President to take necessary steps to the United Nations Security Council for the lifting of the arms embargo." The Heads of State and Government decided to hold another Mini-Summit in Luanda in 10 days. 

The United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) has strongly condemned attacks by the anti-Balaka, UPC, 3R and MPC coalition armed groups and their political allies, including former President François Bozizé.

Bozizé was, in 2014, placed on a UN sanctions list for committing or supporting acts that undermined the country's peace and stability. The sanctions were in reference to his support for criminal Christian militias - the anti-Balaka groups - in 2013. He also faces an international arrest warrant, initiated by the CAR in 2013, accusing him of “crimes against humanity and incitement to genocide”.

Bozizé is now leading a coalition of rebels who joined forces in December, calling themselves the Coalition of Patriots for Change (CPC). They are trying to block the capital, Bangui, in a bid to topple newly re-elected President Faustin Archange Touadera, and continue to carry out attacks on key national highways of the vast country.

The rebels and their backers also continue to spread rumours in the capital aimed at causing panic. They launched an offensive a week before presidential elections on December 27, 2020, trying to disrupt the poll but failed. Bangui was protected by well-equipped UN peacekeepers, CAR troops and their Russian and Rwandan allies.

Last month, Rwandan troops and Russian paramilitaries were sent to the country - under different bilateral arrangements - to reinforce federal troops. On January 18, CAR’s Constitutional Court confirmed Touadera’s re-election, for another five-year term. His government has declared war on the rebels.