Central African Republic

The United States, Britain and France accused Russian mercenaries on Wednesday of operating alongside Central African Republic forces and committing human rights violations against civilians and obstructing U.N. peacekeeping -- charges immediately denied by Russia which denounced the Western nations for engaging in an “anti-Russia political hit job.”

Mankeur Ndiaye, CAR Special Representative and Head of MINUSCA voiced his concern over a military counter-offensive against the Coalition of Patriots for Change (CPC) – an alliance of armed groups that launched attacks against forces loyal to the Government ahead of the presidential vote in December, which returned incumbent Faustin-Archange Touadéra to power.

Secretary-General Antonio Guterres strongly criticized the Central African Republic’s security and allied forces in a new report for an “unprecedented increase in hostile threats and incidents” targeting U.N. peacekeepers and alleged human rights abuses.

The entire cabinet steps down in the latest political crisis to hit the country, but the president’s spokesman says the PM could be asked to lead the new administration.

France has suspended financial support and military cooperation with the Central African Republic, accusing it of backing out of political commitments, and of being complicit in a Russian-backed disinformation campaign targeting France’s presence in Africa. … In December, Facebook removed three networks of fake accounts, two based in Russia, one in France, which it said were being used for interference campaigns in Africa, including in CAR.

Chad has sent men and material to reinforce the border with the Central African Republic despite agreeing to jointly investigate a CAR attack that left six Chadian soldiers dead, a provincial governor said Thursday. … CAR regularly accuses its northern neighbor of supporting armed rebel groups from inside Chad.

A military convoy struck a roadside bomb in the northwest of the conflict-wracked Central African Republic, leaving two police officers and three Russian paramilitaries dead, the government said Sunday.

Child displacement in the Central African Republic (CAR) has now reached its highest level since 2014, according to the latest estimates from the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), warning of the mounting risks children face.

Recent fighting between government forces and rebels in northern Central African Republic (CAR) has forced more than 2,000 refugees into neighboring Chad over the past week, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) said on Tuesday. 

In Central African Republic, the government relies heavily on Russian mercenaries and weaponry to fight rebels. UN experts are now accusing the Russians of gross human rights violations.