BANGUI, Central African Republic (AP) — Rebels in Central African Republic launched a pre-dawn attack Monday on an army base near the country's volatile border with Sudan, the Defense Ministry said.
The army repulsed the assault in the northeastern town of Birao, said Alain George, a communications officer for the ministry.
George blamed the violence on the Convention of Patriots for Justice and Peace rebel group, the only insurgent faction that has not signed a peace deal with the government. The group is known by its French acronym, CPJP.
Journalist Abdel Kader, who works for a local radio station in Birao, said former fighters of a rival rebel faction helped the army fend off the assault. He said two people were killed — one soldier and one of the attackers, and several houses were looted.
Central African Republic has suffered decades of army revolts, coups and rebellions since it gained independence from France in 1960. Poor and landlocked, it is governed by Francois Bozize, a former military commander who came to power in a 2003 rebel war that ousted his predecessor, Ange-Felix Patasse.
The country is expected to hold presidential elections later this year.
