C.Africa Army And Allies Reopen Key Road To Capital: Govt

Sumaira FH Published February 12, 2021 | 12:10 AM

Bangui, Central African Republic, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 12th Feb, 2021 ) :The Central African Republic's government said Thursday that its army along with Russian and Rwandan allies had recaptured a western border town from rebels, reopening a key supply route from the capital Bangui to neighbouring Cameroon that had been blocked since December.

"After the towns of Boali, Bossembele, Bossemptele, Yaloke and Bouar, the Central African Armed Forces (FACA) and their Russian and Rwandan allies liberated the town of Beloko, thereby opening the national road to Cameroon," the government said.

"We will therefore ensure the movement of people and goods in both directions on the Bangui-Beloko axis in complete safety," Prime Minister Firmin Ngrebada said on Facebook.

Six of the country's most powerful armed groups -- which controlled around two-thirds of the country -- joined forces in mid-December to launch an offensive against the government of President Faustin Archange Touadera.

The offensive has planned to disrupt December's elections, but they went ahead and Touadera was re-elected.

The rebels reached the outskirts of Bangui on January 13, but were pushed back and have sought to cut off the capital, according to the UN.

But since late January, the country's military along with Rwandan soldiers and Russian paramilitaries deployed to help shore up Touadera's government have engaged in a counter-offensive to free the route to the border and allow for aid deliveries.

Bangui has not suffered any significant shortages, but prices have soared for imported goods such as flour and onions.

The UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has said that 1,600 trucks, 500 of them with humanitarian aid, are blocked at the Cameroonian border.

On Monday, the first aid convoy was able to reach Bangui under escort by UN peacekeepers after a 50-day blockade by the rebels.

On Wednesday, the rebels said they would temporarily allow aid convoys passage to Bangui.

OCHA says some 57 percent of the country's population of around 4.9 million will require assistance and protection this year.