{{The first EU troops have arrived in the Central African Republic’s capital of Bangui, a French army spokesman told media Wednesday.
The Eufor troops aim to help stabilise the country, which has been torn apart by months of inter-religious violence.}}
François Guillermet said 55 Eufor troops were conducting their first patrols in the city, with the aim of “maintaining security and training local officers”.
The EU military operation, which has been approved by the UN Security Council, will be based out of Bangui and will consist of a force of up to 1,000 troops.
A statement released by the EU said the operation’s main objective will be to reinforce international efforts to protect populations most at risk by the fighting, as well as to facilitate humanitarian aid to the country.
“The launch of this operation demonstrates the EU’s determination to take full part in international efforts to restore stability and security in Bangui and right across the Central African Republic,” the EU’s foreign policy chief, Catherine Ashton, said earlier this month.
“It is vital that there is a return to public order as soon as possible, so that the political transition process can be put back on track,” she said.
The country slipped into chaos after the predominantly Muslim Seleka rebels deposed president François Bozizé in a March coup.
Seleka leader Michel Djotodia officially disbanded the group after he seized power, but some of its former members launched a campaign of killing, raping and looting, prompting communities in the Christian-majority nation to form vigilante “anti-Balaka” (“anti-machete”) militias.
The anti-balaka have since begun launching revenge attacks on the country’s Muslim minority.
{{Eufor in, Chad out}}
France has deployed 2,000 troops to the country since December in an attempt to stem the violence.
Chad, which was France’s main partner in the military operation, began withdrawing its 850 troops last Friday after clashes in Bangui almost a week earlier left more than 30 civilians dead.
The Chadian forces maintain they were returning fire, while a UN preliminary investigation found that they shot indiscriminately into a crowd of civilians.
But the departure of Chadian soldiers could inflame the situation on the ground, Jean-Marie Michel Mokoko, head of the African-led International Support Mission to the Central African Republic (MISCA), told media.
“The Muslim population are worried and saw the Chadian contingent as their protectors,” Mokoko explained. “Their leaving, especially in the [central] region of Bossangoa, will be difficult for the Muslims.”
Forces from Chad, a predominantly Muslim country, have helped to evacuate tens of thousands of Muslims fleeing the violence in Central African Republic.
The UN Security Council is due to approve a 12,000-strong UN peacekeeping force for the former French colony, which will take over authority from MISCA troops.
But the UN peacekeepers are not expected to arrive until September, stoking fears of a security vacuum as the country’s interim government struggles to control inter-religious violence that has killed more than 2,000 people since December.
{france24}
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