Chad to withdraw troops from AU Mission in CAR

Chad said its citizens were being maliciously blamed for the CAR violence.

Chad’s foreign ministry said in a statement on Thursday that it planned to withdraw its troops from an African Union peacekeeping mission in the Central African Republic, CAR.

Chadian soldiers have been at the heart of African efforts to stabilise CAR but its forces have been accused of siding with the mainly Muslim Seleka rebels whose seizure of power last year sparked tit-for-tat violence with Christian militia.

It said this has become imperative because in spite of its sacrifices, Chad and Chadians have been targeted in a gratuitous and malicious campaign that blamed them for all the suffering in CAR.

It said its troops would remain in place while the practicalities of the withdrawal were confirmed.

There was no official reaction from France or the AU force, known as MISCA.

However, the decision appeared to be a setback for France, which has deployed 2,000 troops, in a bid to restore peace to its former colony, a landlocked nation rich in gold, diamonds and uranium that has seen little but instability since independence in 1960.

The dominant military force in the region, Chad, has established itself as a key African ally for Paris and contributed roughly 850 troops to the 6,000-strong African Union peacekeeping mission.

(Reuters/NAN)