Ex-C.Africa president renamed as head of Seleka militia

BANGUI, Central African Republic – The former president of war-torn Central African Republic Michel Djotodia, who led the rebel Seleka militia that swept him to power last year, was renamed head of the movement on Saturday, July 12.

Djotodia fled power in January under strong international pressure for his failure to rein in rogue ex-rebels, who relentlessly murdered, raped and looted civilians.

“As well as the continuation of Djotodia, the former second- and third-in-command, Nourredine Adam and Mohammed Moussa Dhaffane, were reappointed during the general assembly,” a source close to Seleka told Agence France-Presse (AFP).

The ex-president of the landlocked former French colony is subject to United States and United Nations sanctions as is Seleka’s second-in-command Adam, and former president Francois Bozize.

Seleka, which is still engaged in violence in central and northern regions, has been plagued by infighting since it was forced from Bangui in January, in part due to the intervention of French and African troops in December 2013.

The Central African Republic, home to some 4.5 million people, has seen more than a year of unrest, with tit-for-tat violence between the mainly Muslim Seleka and predominantly Christian “anti-balaka” militants claiming thousands of lives and displacing about a quarter of the population. – Rappler.com