Chad to pursue rebel bombers
2008-01-08 21:37
Ndjamena - Chad's government declared on Tuesday that it planned to pursue Chadian rebels hiding in the Darfur region of neighbouring Sudan, following the bombing of rebel bases across the troubled border.
The Chadian air force carried out the bombing raids over the past two days, aimed at rebels opposed to Chadian President Idriss Deby Itno, who has been in power since 1990.
"If they (the rebels) come from Sudan it is not surprising that we hit them where they come from," said government spokesperson Hourmadji Moussa Doumgor.
"We are in a state of alert... and our air force is monitoring the border from one end to the other to be prepared for any eventuality," he added.
Civilians dead
Khartoum has denounced the bombing raids, claiming civilians have been killed in the attacks and has lodged a protest with the UN Security Council.
A Sudanese army spokesperson has said that Chadian aircraft bombed positions in the west of strife-torn Darfur early Sunday, killing three civilians and wounding four more.
As for the Chadian rebels, a spokesperson for the latest rebel alliance formed in mid-December, Abderaman Koulamallah, said an attack on Monday could not have affected the movement since "our troops are all on the Chadian side of the border."
However, the head of one group in the Alliance, the Union of Forces for Democracy and Development - Fundamental (UFDD-F), acknowledged his base in Sudan was hit on Sunday.
"I was bombed on December 28 and yesterday (Sunday) by Chadian aircraft inside Sudan," Abdelwahid Aboud Makaye said, reached by satellite telephone from Libreville, admitting his headquarters are on the Sudanese side of the border.
Chadian military sources told reporters on Monday that the air force had bombed several rebel bases south of El-Geneina, the capital of West Darfur, about 200km across the desert from Abeche, the main town in eastern Chad. They said the same area was hit on Sunday.
"Chad maintains the right not only to respond to any attack from where it is launched, but also to use its legitimate right of pursuit" against those who threaten its sovereignty, the statement said.