Monday, November 13, 2006
Rebels known as the Union of Democratic Forces for Unity (UDFU) or the UFDR with its French initials in theCentral African Republic (CAR) claim to have taken over another town in the CAR after a two-week long offensive.
The rebels told aBBC reporter via satellite telephone that they had capturedOuadda-Djalle, an isolated settlement 200 km west of the border withSudan.
A government spokesman has only confirmed the rebels' activity but so far, not the seizure of the town. The government claims that Ouadda-Djalle still remains in the army's hands.
The UFDR claims their reasons for rebelling are to fight against corruption and mismanagement under CAR PresidentFrancois Bozize's handling, who seized power in a2003 coup.
The first town to fall into the hands of the UFDR wasBirao, which was captured in October. Both towns claimed by the rebels are near easternChad and Sudan's westernDarfur region.
The CAR government believes that the rebels are being supported by Sudanese authorities and are operating from Darfur. Sudan has denied this, though.
TheFrench military has been requested to come and stop the rebellion from getting out of control.
"We captured this town in the early hours of the morning this Friday after [a] fierce battle with the regular army," Abakar Saboune, one of the rebels said.
Saboune also said twenty government troops were killed in the seizure, and twelve more were taken prisoner. The rebels only lost three people, and another two were wounded.
The UFDR's forces, currently located 750 km north of theBangui, are thought to be ready to capture another two towns.
The rebels requested that a national conference be held to discuss the matter of sharing power, but the government has, at this point, not responded.
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