Rebel attacks send refugees fleeing Central African Republic to Chad, UN agency reports

Some 1,000 refugees from the Central African Republic (CAR) have arrived in southern Chad since late last month, fleeing what they say are rebel attacks in the northern part of their country, and swelling the total number of CAR refugees being hosted by its neighbour to more than 43,000.

The latest refugees from five villages crossed the border at Kaba and arrived in Bekoninga, a village 35 kilometres from Goré, the main town in southern Chad. They talked of children having been kidnapped for ransom, repeated attacks by armed groups, summary executions, house burnings, and violent CAR military search operations in their villages, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

They also complained of victimization by all sides in increasingly lawless in the northern part of their home country.

UNHCR relocated a first group of 516 refugees, grouped into 98 families, to Gondjé refugee camp yesterday, bringing the number of refugees there to more than 3,000. The agency is scheduled to relocate a further 500 refugees on the Chadian side of the border next week.

Since last June, more than 11,000 refugees from CAR have crossed into southern Chad because of the continuing insecurity.

UNHCR is also taking care of more than 200,000 refugees from Darfur in 12 refugee camps in eastern Chad.