A leader of Central African Republic's anti-Balaka Christian militia, a
widely feared commander who has been implicated in attacks on civilians
throughout the battle-scarred country, has been arrested, a justice
official said Sunday.
UN Peacekeepers -Photo credit AFP
Rodrigue Ngaibona, alias Andilo, was arrested in the town of Bouca on
Saturday by Cameroonian peacekeepers, prosecutor Maurice Dibert-Dollet
said in a statement. An arrest warrant was issued last May linking
Ngaibona to murders, rapes and looting during the country's
unprecedented sectarian violence in which thousands have died.
The anti-Balaka militia formed in response to widespread human rights
abuses committed by the mostly Muslim Seleka rebel coalition, which
toppled the president of a decade in 2013 and installed its leader,
Michel Djotodia, as head of state.
A U.N. expert panel has described Ngaibona as "a feared and powerful commander" of the militia, and Amnesty International
said in a December report that he had been linked to attacks on
civilians "in many parts of the country." Residents of the capital,
Bangui, have accused his elements of widespread racketeering and
extortion.
French and Central African forces carried out a failed joint operation to arrest Ngaibona last October.
Djotodia stepped down in early 2014 under intense international
pressure, and the country is currently being led by a transitional
government that is trying to organize elections.
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