The rebels in the Central African Republic (CAR) announced the killing of fighters from the private military company (PMC) Wagner. Local edition Corbeau News reports about it.
The anti-government Coalition of Patriots for Change said it took one of the fighters hostage and killed several more. The rebels also reported the destruction of a truck of Russian mercenaries. The incident occurred during the fighting with government forces near the city of Bambari on February 10.
Representatives of the Red Cross and Médecins Sans Frontières confirmed that on the day of the fighting, the bodies of the killed were indeed delivered to the local morgues, but did not provide other details.
The revival of the rebel movement in the CAR was caused by the presidential and parliamentary elections that took place on December 27. It was clarified that three armed rebel groups have united in the anti-government “Coalition of Patriots for Change” in order to prevent President Faustin-Archange Touadere from being re-elected for a second term. The leader of the militants is considered the former president of the country, Francois Bozizet. The government accuses him of attempting a coup.
In December 2020, at the request of local authorities, Moscow sent 300 military instructors to the country. It was clarified that on the spot they would train the servicemen of the republic’s national army. At the same time, information appeared that Russian mercenaries began to help the CAR army – they were noticed 130 kilometers north-west of the republic’s capital, Bangui, along with mercenaries from Rwanda and representatives of the CAR Armed Forces (FACA).
On January 27, 2021, it was reported that Russia withdrew its military helicopters from the Central African Republic (CAR), which were sent to this country amid fighting with the rebels. The Foreign Ministry noted that Russian instructors will remain in the country for now.