LRA rebels fleeing toward CAR

2009-01-03 13:00

Kinshasa - Ugandan rebels accused of killing hundreds of Congolese civilians are fleeing a joint offensive by three African armies and heading toward Central African Republic, Congo's government said.

The coalition of forces from Congo, Uganda and Sudan has "completely destroyed" the rebel positions in northeast Congo's Garamba National Park, government spokesman Lambert Mende said on Friday.

But not all of the Lord's Resistance Army rebel group's bases have been entirely dismantled, he said, calling the offensive "80% successful" three weeks after it was launched.

The Lord's Resistance Army has waged one of Africa's longest and most brutal wars for the last two decades.

In the past, aid and rights groups have accused the rebels of cutting off the lips of civilians and forcing thousands of children to serve as soldiers or sex slaves.

The conflict has spilled into Sudan and Congo, which suffered back-to-back civil wars from 1996 to 2002 that drew neighbouring countries into what became a rush to plunder Congo's massive mineral wealth.

Since December 25 in northeastern Congo, the Ugandan rebels have killed more than 400 people in a series of massacres, according to Catholic charity group Caritas, which cited its staff in the region. Caritas said its employees identified the rebels by their dreadlocked hair and Acholi language.

The rebel group and Ugandan government have accused each other in the past of being behind attacks in the remote area of Congo.

Central African Republic, informed by Congo of the rebels' approach, has deployed soldiers along its border to prevent the rebels from crossing, Mende said.

Officials and witnesses said Lord's attackers hacked scores of people to death as the victims were seeking refuge at a Catholic church on December 26, and the United Nations initially said the rebels had killed at least 189 people in three area villages on two recent days.

Long-running peace talks between the Lord's Resistance Army and Uganda's government have stalled. Rebel leaders have sought guarantees they will not be arrested under international warrants.

The rebels' elusive leader, Joseph Kony, and other top members are wanted by the International Criminal Court in The Hague, Netherlands, on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

- AP