Russian-trained CAR troops’ failure to repulse militias underlines attack and looting risks to NGOs in six-month outlook

On 11 June, ex-Séléka militiamen repulsed the CAR armed forces (Forces armées centrafricaines: FACA) and their Russian instructors, injuring three, during fighting in the central town of Bambari. Both FACA and the Russians retreated to the UN base in the town. Intense fighting has been under way in Bambari since mid-May, as the Union for Peace in CAR (Union pour la paix en Centrafrique: UPC) ex-Séléka faction battles for control of the town. One UN soldier was killed and another injured in the latest violence as peacekeepers also tried to prevent UPC fighters from occupying key installations. Insurgents are reported to have taken over the police station.

Significance: This was the first real test for FACA since their training with Russian military advisers began in January and indicates the troops’ ongoing problems of incapacity and indiscipline. By November 2017, only 400 FACA troops were deployed outside Bangui despite two years’ military training by an EU mission. The insurgents’ easy resistance to the offensive suggests FACA’s unpreparedness to defend the country in at least the six-month outlook, placing a continued security burden on the already struggling UN mission, MINUSCA. Last week, nine international aid organisations were forced to suspend operations in Bambari, and had to evacuate their staff to Bangui. With FACA unlikely to be operational and MINUSCA thinly spread across the country, foreign organisations will face continued attacks and looting of their premises, posing death and injury risks to their personnel. Particularly vulnerable areas include Gambo and Alindao, where the UPC is active and has declared its opposition to FACA’s deployment. A likely deterrent would be tough sentencing of key protagonists by CAR’s Special Criminal Court, which begins its first investigations into war crimes this month, three years after its establishment. Bambari is rich in gold and diamonds and the rapid deployment of FACA, accompanied by Russian trainers, suggests economic interests over ostensible military training. Further speedy deployments to other conflict towns that lie in key mining areas, such as Bria and Bangassou, would reconfirm this intent.