Chad army routs CPJP rebels in CAR border garrison town Birao - European Union pledges 50 billion euros to Africa's development

CHAD'S military repelled rebels from a key border town in northern Central African Republic this week, days after the rebel fighters seized it, officials in both countries said today, Wednesday 01 December.

The African Union said the flare-up in fighting around the town of Birao in recent days had killed several civilians and threatened to complicate preparations for much-delayed elections in CAR, now due in January.

"We affirm that the Chadian army has exercised its right of pursuit by destroying the remaining mercenaries... in the town of Birao," Chad's Army Chief of Staff, General Djionadji, told a news conference late on Tuesday.

A spokesman for the CPJP rebel group said Chadian helicopters and tanks crossed the border from Chad to bombard the town and that rebel fighters retreated on Tuesday.

"We simply evacuated the town because the civilian population, including women and children, were in the process of being killed," CPJP spokesman and commander Issene Abdoulaye told Reuters by telephone.

Full story below.

Chad army routs rebels in Central African Republic
Source: (AP) / Press Trust of India - www.ptinews.com
Date: Wednesday, 01 December 2010 by Staff Writer 17:40 HRS IST

N'Djamena (Chad), Dec 1 (AP) - Chad's army says it has entered the northwest part of neighbouring Central African Republic and pushed out a group of rebels that had attempted to take a town there.

The army chief said late yesterday that soldiers crossed the border to the town of Birao which was occupied by rebels from the Convention of Patriots for Justice and Peace movement. The army says no children or women were killed in the short operation, but did not give details on combatant deaths.

The rebels had entered the town last week.

Chad and the Central African Republic are both impoverished central African nations grappling with the spillover from violence in Sudan's Darfur province.

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Chad army repels rebels in CAR border town
Source: Reuters Africa - af.reuters.com
Date: Wednesday, 01 December 2010 3:52pm GMT

N'DJAMENA (Reuters) - Chad's military repelled rebels from a key border town in northern Central African Republic this week, days after the rebel fighters seized it, officials in both countries said on Wednesday.

The African Union said the flare-up in fighting around the town of Birao in recent days had killed several civilians and threatened to complicate preparations for much-delayed elections in CAR, now due in January.

"We affirm that the Chadian army has exercised its right of pursuit by destroying the remaining mercenaries... in the town of Birao," Chad's Army Chief of Staff, General Djionadji, told a news conference late on Tuesday.

A spokesman for the CPJP rebel group said Chadian helicopters and tanks crossed the border from Chad to bombard the town and that rebel fighters retreated on Tuesday.

"We simply evacuated the town because the civilian population, including women and children, were in the process of being killed," CPJP spokesman and commander Issene Abdoulaye told Reuters by telephone.

Djionadji denied women and children were killed in the raid. No details of casualties were available.

The CPJP rebels, who unlike other rebel groups in CAR have not signed peace accords with President Francois Bozize, seized Birao last week and said they were targeting the capital Bangui far to the south.

A Chad-based U.N. peacekeeping force had handed control of Birao over to state authorities on November 15 as its mission to protect civilians in the two countries comes to an end.

AU President Jean Ping condemned the fighting and called on politicians to work to ensure presidential and legislative elections due in January are not derailed.

Rebel clashes and problems over funding in the former French colony have delayed elections three times already, leaving Bozize in power beyond his initial mandate which ended in June.

Central African Republic is rich in minerals but has been caught up in the conflicts of neighbouring Chad, Sudan and Democratic Republic of Congo.

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Further Reading

Chad army routs rebels in Central African Republic
Washington Post - Wed, 01 Dec 2010

Central African Republic: Security remains fragile ahead of UN troop withdrawal and presidential election
Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre; Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC)
‎Wed, 01 Dec 2010 /Reprinted at ReliefWeb

"Bemba's soldiers raped and killed in the Central African Republic"
Radio Netherlands - ‎Wed, 01 Dec 2010

Bokassa rehabilitated by Central African Republic
BBC News - Wed, 01 Dec 2010

UN - Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General
www.un.org - Tues, 30 Nov 2010 / Reprinted at ISRIA. Excerpt:

Question: And also, in Central African Republic, I want… it seems that maybe the Government has taken back control of… but there is this garrison town of Birao that MINURCAT [United Nations Mission in Chad and the Central African Republic] used to somehow have a presence in, that they handed back to the Government on 15 November, it was reported to be overrun by rebels. What’s going to be… One, is there any kind of update, whether from OCHA or otherwise, on what’s the status of that town? And what’s going to be the UN’s ongoing role, if any, in that part of CAR which seems to be -- the civilians are being displaced and rebels are taking and untaking towns?

Acting Deputy Spokesperson: Well, on that, the only thing I’d have to share with you is to reiterate the points made by the Secretary-General in his recent statement, in which he condemned the recent attack on the town of Birao by rebels of the “Convention des patriotes pour la justice et la paix” (CPJP). And he calls on all concerned to exercise maximum restraint to ensure the safety of civilians, as efforts are being made by the national authorities to restore normalcy, and ensure peace and reconciliation among all the parties concerned.

Africa: European Union Pledges 50 Billion Euros to Africa's Development
Liberia Government (Monrovia) - Wed, 01 Dec 2010 /Reprinted at AllAfrica.com

Africa/EU Reinforce Partnership‎
Cameroon Tribune by Richard Kwang Kometa
Wed, 01 Dec 2010 /Reprinted at AllAfrica.com

Tripoli Declaration: economic ties revived‎
Radio Netherlands by Ruben Koops - Wed, 01 Dec 2010

Tripoli Declaration / 3rd Africa EU Summit
European Council - Wed, 01 Dec 2010 /Reprinted by APO. Excerpt:

On Sudan, we emphasise the urgency and importance of ensuring that all elements of the CPA, including those concerning Abyei, South Kordofan and Blue Nile, are implemented in a timely, peaceful and credible manner, in particular the referendum on South Sudan whose results should be accepted by all.

Furthermore, we encourage all parties to progress with the post referendum issues. In this context, we welcome the leadership of the AU in close cooperation with the UN as well as the support provided by the AUHIP led by President Mbeki, and by IGAD. We welcome in particular the progress made and agreements reached on the framework regarding outstanding CPA issues. Our cooperation will continue to build on our common values and goals in pursuit of good governance, democracy and the rule of law. We firmly condemn all unconstitutional changes of governments which, alongside bad governance, are one of the main causes of instability.

Saudi Arabia - Deputy Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Sends Cable of Congratulations to President of Central African Republic
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Ministry of Foreign Affairs - Wed, 01 Dec 2010 /Reprinted at ISRIA

Sudan boycotts Africa-EU summit
Sapa-AFP - ‎‎Wed, 01 Dec 2010 /Reprinted at Mmegi

International war crimes court urges Central African Republic to arrest Sudan's al-Bashir
AP - Wed, 01 Dec 2010, 8:09 am ET /Reprinted at www.canadaeast.com

ICC asks Central African Republic to arrest Bashir on visit
DPA - ‎‎Wed, 01 Dec 2010 8:22 am ET /Reprinted at EARTHtimes.org

Central African Republic must arrest Omar al-Bashir during visit
Amnesty International - Wed Dec 1, 7:48 am ET

Sudan's Bashir cancels CAR trip amid ICC pressure - Summary
DPA - ‎‎Wed, 01 Dec 2010 /Reprinted at EARTHtimes.org

African Union backs Sudan's Bashir
Mail & Guardian - ‎‎Wed, 01 Dec 2010

Key political risks to watch in Congo-FACTBOX
Reuters by Katrina Manson- ‎‎Wed, 01 Dec 2010 /Reprinted by Forexyard

EU split on UN call for Congo bridging mission - France, UK, Germany have ruled out an EU intervention force

The European Union (EU) Foreign Ministers postponed the sending of a temporary military mission to the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The EU remained divided Monday Dec. 08 over whether to dispatch peacekeepers to the Democratic Republic of Congo despite a UN request.

France, the UK and Germany have ruled out an EU intervention force.

Belgium, former colonizer in Congo, was the only country in favour of the request, which also received support from Spain, Ireland, Czech Republic, Holland and Luxembourg, after a deeper study on the situation.

Belgian Foreign Minister Karel De Gucht said before the discussions there was an urgent need for bridging mission of 2,500-3,000 troops.

"It will take four to six months before the additional troops for MONUC will arrive and the humanitarian situation is dramatic over there," De Gucht told reporters.

Britain's Foreign Secretary David Miliband told reporters beefing up the U.N. peacekeeping force was the priority.

"Our position has always been that there is a ... a U.N. commitment to increase the size of the MONUC force, so the first port of call is for countries to see whether they can add, either at a planning or operational level to that MONUC force," said Miliband.

Monday's gathering was largely designed to prepare the groundwork for this week's EU summit of heads of state.

EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said ministers would discuss Mr Ban's appeal, but added: "Let me also underline that the situation on the ground is getting slightly better, and politically also."

The Brussels meeting came as the first direct talks between representatives of the Congolese government and CNDP rebels were held in Kenya.

Sources: The following news reports:

BELGIUM ASKS FOR TROOPS FOR CONGO

December 08, 2008 report from The Scotsman:

BELGIUM will appeal to the European Union to send peacekeepers to the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, its former colony.

Karel De Gucht, Belgium's foreign minister, was due at EU talks today. France, the UK and Germany have ruled out an EU intervention force.

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EU SIDESTEPS URGENT APPEAL FOR CONGO FORCE

December 08, 2008 report from the Financial Times by Helen Warrell in Brussels and Harvey Morris at the United Nations:

The European Union sidestepped an appeal by the United Nations on Monday to dispatch troops to the Democratic Republic of the Congo to avert a humanitarian catastrophe in the east of the country where war has displaced a quarter of a million civilians.

Although a statement by EU foreign ministers meeting in Brussels said a formal response to the request from Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary-general, would be forthcoming in due course, it was clear that differences among member states made the deployment unlikely.

The statement came four days after Mr Ban wrote to the EU saying a European-led force was urgently required to ensure humanitarian aid supplies reached those who had fled fighting between government and rebel forces in Congo’s North Kivu province.

The EU deployment would fill the security gap until the UN’s own peace force, Monuc, was reinforced, a process Mr Ban said could take another four months.

Belgium, Sweden, Finland, Ireland and the Netherlands have expressed support for dispatching troops, but the deployment was strenuously opposed by the UK and Germany. Bernard Kouchner, French foreign minister, expressed frustration that no firm decision had been made.

As EU ministers met in Brussels, rebel and government representatives gathered in Nairobi, Kenya for their first face-to-face talks since fighting erupted in August. Government forces have almost disintegrated in the face of an offensive by Tutsi rebels led by the renegade general Laurent Nkunda, leaving Monuc as the only organised force in the region.

Neither Mr Nkunda nor Joseph Kabila, the Congolese president who has also appealed for European peacekeepers, were present for the Nairobi talks.

Mr Ban did not specify the size of the requested European contingent but UN officials were understood to have in mind a mobile force of about 1,000 to 1,500. One of its specific tasks would be to protect the airport and government installations in Goma, where the Monuc force is based, and other centres of population in the province.

The UN Security Council approved last month an extra 3,000 troops to reinforce the 17,000-strong Monuc, already the UN’s largest peacekeeping deployment.

Alain Le Roy, the UN’s head of peacekeeping, wrote in an article at the weekend: “Civilians have suffered from intense and often chaotic fighting, driven from their homes.”

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EUROPE POSTPONES TROOPS TO DEMOCRATIC CONGO

December 08, 2008 report from Prensa Latina, Brussels:

The European Union Foreign Ministers postponed the sending of a temporary military mission to the Democratic Republic of Congo despite the formal request of the United Nations.

By now, the representatives of the 27 member countries of the EU did not join criteria, and just limited themselves to reassert the support of the United Nations Organization Mission to the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUC, in French).

Javier Solanas, EU High Representative for International Relations and Common Security, said UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon sent a letter to him, in which Ki Moon asked him to think about sending troops to Democratic Congo for six months.

In that time, MONUC would increase the number of soldiers from 17,000 to 20,000.

Belgium, former colonizer in Congo, was the only country in favour of the request, which also received support from Spain, Ireland, Czech Republic, Holland and Luxembourg, after a deeper study on the situation.

Other countries such as Germany expressed their disagreement and did not take a definite position on the matter.

All the EU members will wait for the decision of the European Commission on a possible direct operation in the Congolese region of North Kivu.

The purpose of MONUC is to pacify the east of Democratic Congo, where the rebel movement led by Tutsi general Laurent Nkunda is facing governmental forces. (ef tac por)

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EU SPLIT ON CONGO TROOP MISSION

December 09, 2008 report from FOCUS News Agency, Brussels:

European foreign ministers are divided over calls to send troops to the war-torn Democratic Republic of Congo, the BBC revealed.

Belgium urged the deployment of a "bridging" force but other members of the bloc were lukewarm on the idea.

The UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on the EU on Friday to send in troops until UN reinforcements arrive.

The Brussels meeting came as the first direct talks between representatives of the Congolese government and CNDP rebels were held in Kenya.

Opening Monday's discussions in Nairobi, former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo said the crisis in eastern Congo was "a scar on Africa". And Kenyan Foreign Minister Moses Wetangula said before the talks got underway: "Please don't let Africa down. Don't let your country down. Let this be the beginning of the end."

But the BBC says expectations for the talks are low and wider negotiations involving many of the other armed groups in the region will be needed.

About 20 armed groups were asked to join the meeting, but only representatives of Gen Laurent Nkunda's CNDP faction turned up and the two delegations met behind closed doors.

Until now the government in Kinshasa has treated the CNDP - which stands for National Congress for the Defence of the People - as just another armed rebel group.

Neither DR Congo President Joseph Kabila nor Gen Nkunda is present at the meeting. But the fact it is taking place at all is a tacit acknowledgement of the CNDP's military dominance in the region, says our correspondent.

The fighting in eastern Congo has displaced some 250,000 people since August, and the rebels have the North Kivu province capital of Goma surrounded.

At Monday's meeting in Brussels, EU foreign ministers took no decision and asked the European Commission to prepare a response to the UN secretary general.

EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said ministers would discuss Mr Ban's appeal, but added: "Let me also underline that the situation on the ground is getting slightly better, and politically also."

But non-governmental organisations poured scorn on any suggestion things in eastern DR Congo were improving, saying rape, murder and pillage was still rife in the region.

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EU MULLS TROOP PRESENCE IN DR CONGO

December 08, 2008 report by DPA news agency (dfm):

Despites appeals from the United Nations for peacekeeping troops in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the European Union is hesitant to commit. Germany, in particular, prefers a diplomatic solution.

EU foreign ministers were meeting in Brussels on Monday, Dec. 8, to discuss the UN request to send peacekeeping troops to DR Congo.

France, which holds the EU's rotating presidency, had ruled out the deployment of European forces.

But pressure on ministers to act has increased following an appeal from UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon, who said Europe should help reinforce UN peacekeepers in the former Belgian colony until more UN troops can be deployed.

"It is urgent that we take a decision on such a bridging force (to DR Congo), which to my mind is absolutely necessary," said Belgian Foreign Minister Karel De Gucht.

De Gucht had said earlier December that an EU peacekeeping force for DR Congo would be unlikely as no one country was prepared to lead such a mission.

EU troops ready

Some 250,000 civilians have been displaced in the east of the DR Congo since the summer as a result of renewed clashes between government forces and Tutsi rebels led by renegade general Laurent Nkunda.

De Gucht said an EU mission would need up to 3,000 heavily-armed soldiers, which would fill in immediate shortages.

Finnish Foreign Minister Alexander Stubb said the EU should consider deploying its battle groups.

The EU has two such corps, each consisting of about 1,500 soldiers, on standby. These troops are deployable at short notice anywhere in the world but have remained unused to date.

"If we don't send them to Congo, where do we send them?" Stubb asked.

Germany urges diplomacy

However, EU heavyweight Germany is among those pushing for a diplomatic solution to the DR Congo crisis.

Ministers were greeted by a few dozen protesters who were calling for action on the DR Congo question, but diplomats said they did not expect any major decision to be taken on the issue at the meeting.

Monday's gathering was largely designed to prepare the groundwork for this week's EU summit of heads of state.

The situation in Zimbabwe and relations with Pakistan were also to be discussed.

Ministers were also expected to take a look at the EU's EULEX mission in Kosovo and its naval mission off the coast of Somalia. Both missions formally begin this week.

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EU SPLIT ON UN CALL FOR CONGO BRIDGING MISSION

December 08, 2008 report from Reuters by Ingrid Melander and David Brunnstrom, Brussels:

European Union ministers were split on Monday over the U.N.'s call for an EU force to boost peacekeepers in Congo, with Belgium urging the bloc send a bridging mission and Britain wanting it to bolster U.N. troops.

Last Friday, United Nation's Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon repeated a call for a EU "bridging force", saying it may take up to six months for the U.N. to deploy 3,000 more peacekeepers to Congo to boost its 17,000-strong force, known as MONUC.

The foreign ministers took no decision at a meeting in Brussels on Monday and tasked EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana and the European Commission to prepare a response to Ban's letter, an EU official said.

The idea of an EU mission has been in the air for a few weeks but the bloc has so far been reluctant to commit troops, and prospects appeared to dim after Belgium said last week there was little appetite for such a mission.

Belgian Foreign Minister Karel De Gucht said before the discussions there was an urgent need for bridging mission of 2,500-3,000 troops.

"It will take four to six months before the additional troops for MONUC will arrive and the humanitarian situation is dramatic over there," De Gucht told reporters.

Britain's Foreign Secretary David Miliband told reporters beefing up the U.N. peacekeeping force was the priority.

"Our position has always been that there is a ... a U.N. commitment to increase the size of the MONUC force, so the first port of call is for countries to see whether they can add, either at a planning or operational level to that MONUC force," said Miliband.

Some 250,000 people have been displaced by the violence in Congo, in which forces of renegade Congolese Tutsi Gen. Laurent Nkunda has been battling pro-government militias.

Two EU "battle groups" are on standby for missions at any given time. One of those on standby until the year-end is British, while the other is led by Germany with contributions from France, Spain, Belgium and Luxembourg.

"EUROPE SHOULD BE EFFECTVE"

From January 1, Italy will head one standby battle group with forces from Spain, Portugal and Greece, and Greece the other, with troops from Bulgaria, Cyprus and Romania.

Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said it was premature to say if his country would be ready to send troops in a battle group but added that some countries would call for such a deployment and he was willing to discuss it.

"One point is very clear, Europe should be effective. We cannot stay as inactive as we are now," he told reporters.

The EU's Solana said ministers would discuss Ban's call, but added: "Let me also underline that the situation on the ground is getting slightly better, and politically also."

The U.N. says fighting in Congo has triggered a humanitarian catastrophe and aid groups have criticised the EU's failure to respond with troops.

"We have had a month of every possible excuse as to why Europe will not send forces to bolster U.N. peacekeepers," said Elise Ford, Head of Office at Oxfam International in Brussels.

"Without an adequate professional force supporting U.N. peacekeepers to provide a measure of security for the population, the killing, raping and looting will continue unabated. We cannot stand by and watch."

Congo's 1998-2003 war sucked in six neighbouring armies and caused more than 5 million deaths. EU soldiers intervened in the country in 2003 to halt militia violence that grew out of the broader war and to protect 2006 elections that returned President Joseph Kabila to office.

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