Chad capital hit by new fighting

Fresh fighting has broken out between government and rebel forces in Chad's capital N'Djamena, reports say.
Heavy weapons fire was heard near the palace where President Idriss Deby is said to be holding out.

Rebels seized large parts of the city on Saturday, but military action subsided overnight as both sides claimed to be in control.

More than 500 French and other foreign citizens have been evacuated to the Gabonese capital, Libreville.

The arriving evacuees appeared "harassed but happy", an AFP news agency journalist in Libreville said.

"It's been a hard, exhausting day. We didn't know how things might turn out," one mother told the agency.

Of the 514 evacuated, 217 were French and the rest included Germans, Belgians, Spanish, Portuguese, Armenians and Egyptians.

About 400 others are gathered in designated areas in N'Djamena, guarded by French troops.

Ceasefire

Witnesses heard anti-tank and automatic weapons fire coming from the city centre, starting at about 0500 local time (0400 GMT).

AFP reported that government helicopters had attacked a column of rebels in the south of the city heading towards the main radio station.

French Mirage combat planes have also been overflying the area.

French officials say Paris is neutral in the military conflict but politically backs Mr Deby's government.

France has also offered to evacuate Mr Deby but he refused to go, French officials told AFP.

Meanwhile French Defence Minister Herve Morin confirmed that the Chadian army chief of staff, Daoud Soumain, had been killed in combat during the rebel advance on the capital.

The fighting comes despite reports of a ceasefire brokered by Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.

Rebel spokesman Abderamane Khoulamanla confirmed reports that Colonel Gaddafi had called rebel leader Mahamat Nouri to propose a ceasefire.

"Our leader replied that he would agree to that if his two other partners in the rebellion would agree as well," Mr Khoulamanla said.

'Assault planned'

Another rebel spokesman, Henchi Ordjo, told Reuters news agency that the rebel fighters were simply holding back an assault on the palace to allow the president the chance to leave.

"No ceasefire has been agreed," he said.


The African Union has charged Libya with overseeing the response to the rebellion in Chad, which was condemned at the end of the organisation's summit in Ethiopia.

There was heavy fighting throughout Saturday after thousands of rebels entered N'Djamena in the morning.

They began their advance on the city from near Chad's eastern border with Sudan earlier this week.

There were reports of outbreaks of looting, and of residents cheering on the rebel forces in some areas of the city.

Troubled rule

The BBC's Stephanie Hancock, recently based in Chad, says insecurity has been the hallmark of Mr Deby's 17-year rule.

In 2005, he changed the constitution so that he could run for a third term in office, which sparked mass desertions from the army.

The situation was made worse by the accumulation of oil wealth by Mr Deby and his entourage.


There is also tension with Sudan. Chadian officials say Khartoum is nervous about the deployment of EU troops in Chad and a joint AU/UN force in Sudan's western region of Darfur - both with the mandate of protecting civilians affected by fighting in Darfur.

France dominates the EU force bound for Chad, whose deployment has been delayed because of the fighting.

Some 100 troops Austrian and Irish troops had been due to arrive last Thursday.

Chadian officials have accused the rebels of seeking to stop the deployment of the EU force.

Both the Chadian and Sudanese governments support rebels in each others' territory.

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MORE CRISIS FROM AFRICA

Chadian forces are beating back rebels who had advanced towards the presidential palace in the capital N'Djamena, the French military says.
Thousands of rebels advanced into the city on Saturday and said they had surrounded the palace.

But Chad's ambassador to Ethiopia said the city had not fallen and President Idriss Deby was "fine" in his palace.

The French Foreign Ministry condemned the attempt to "seize power by force", blaming "armed forces from outside".

The rebels began their advance on N'Djamena from near Chad's eastern border with Sudan earlier this week. Both the Chadian and Sudanese governments support rebels in each others' territory.

There has been intense gunfire in the city centre. A witness told the BBC that 30 army tanks were burning in the streets.

French military spokesman Col Thierry Burkhard said Chadian government forces were pushing the rebel forces out of the city, but added that there was not a clear front line. He said fighting was "sporadic".

He was not able to confirm the whereabouts of President Deby.

'Windows shaking'

Earlier, rebel spokesman Abakar Tollimi told AFP news agency that the rebels controlled the city, although there were some "pockets of resistance".

He said that the president was able to leave the palace if he wanted to. Earlier he had said Mr Deby would fall within hours.

France said it was preparing to evacuate its citizens and called on people to stay indoors.



French Defence Ministry spokesman Christophe Pazouk earlier told the BBC the rebel force in the city consisted of several thousand men, and that they had entered the city surprisingly easily.

A witness in the city told the BBC that the town was under the rebels' control and they were firing into the air in celebration.

There were reports of outbreaks of looting, and of residents cheering on the rebel forces in some areas of the city.

"From the third-floor we can see smoke coming from about a kilometre and a half away near the presidential palace," US aid worker Katie-Jay Scott told the BBC.

"The gunfire and artillery shakes the windows of the hotel."

A bomb hit the residence of Saudi Arabia's ambassador to Chad, killing the wife and daughter of an embassy employee, the Saudi foreign ministry said.

The African Union called for an end to the rebels' advance, and said it would expel Chad from the organisation if they took power.

"The assembly strongly condemns the attacks perpetrated by armed groups against the Chadian government and demands that an immediate end be put to these attacks and resulting bloodshed," the AU said in the final declaration of its summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Friction with Sudan

The BBC's Stephanie Hancock, recently based in Chad, says insecurity has been the hallmark of Mr Deby's 17-year rule.

But the tide began to turn in 2005 when he changed the constitution so that he could run for a third term in office, she says.

This prompted mass desertions from the army, and the situation was made worse by the accumulation of oil wealth by Mr Deby and his entourage.

There is also tension with Sudan. Chadian officials say Khartoum is nervous about the deployment of EU troops in Chad and a joint AU/UN force in Sudan's western region of Darfur - both with the mandate of protecting civilians affected by fighting in Darfur.

French involvement

About 150 French troops have arrived to help evacuate some 1,500 expatriates, the vast majority of whom live in N'Djamena.

AFP said a French army airbus was preparing to fly to Chad to take part in an eventual evacuation.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy held a meeting to discuss the crisis late on Friday night with senior ministers and military figures.

The BBC's Alasdair Sandford, in Paris, says France is directly involved in the crisis.

It dominates the EU force bound for Chad, whose deployment has been delayed because of the fighting. Some 100 troops Austrian and Irish troops had been due to arrive last Thursday.

Under a 30-year-old agreement, the French military gives logistical and intelligence support to Chad's government.

But late last year, one of the rebel groups, the UFDD, declared a "state of war" against French and other foreign forces because it said they were "bringing diplomatic, strategic and logistical aid" to the president.

Chad's Foreign Ministers Ahmat Allami has accused Sudan of instigating the rebel advance in order to stop the deployment of the EU force:

"Sudan does not want this force because it would shine a light on all the genocide that is taking place in Darfur orchestrated from Chadian territory," he told the BBC.

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Stop Kenya burning, says AU head

African leaders at their summit in Ethiopia have been told they must get involved with the crisis in Kenya.
AU commission chairman Alpha Oumar Konare told them they could not just sit by. "If Kenya burns, there will be nothing for tomorrow," he said.

More than 850 people have died in political and ethnic clashes since last month's elections, which the opposition says were rigged.

In Nairobi, talks between government and opposition have begun.

Mr Konare - the AU's top executive - said it was the AU's duty to support the mediation process which is led by former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan.

'Special responsibility'

The current UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon urged Kenyan leaders to find a peaceful way out.

"President [Mwai] Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga... have a special responsibility to solve the crisis peacefully," he told the summit.

In Kenya itself, just as substantive peace talks began in Nairobi, tension rose in the Rift Valley town of Eldoret when a traffic policeman shot dead an opposition MP - the second to be killed this week.

Kenyan police say the killing was an act of revenge by a jealous boyfriend.

But shops closed as angry protestors marched through the town. Opposition leaders say the shooting was political.

Violence first broke out after the 27 December presidential elections, which the opposition Orange Democratic Movement says Mr Kibaki's government rigged.

Mr Kibaki is among more than 40 leaders present at the African Union summit in Addis Ababa, even though the ODM called on the AU not to recognise him.

Mr Odinga, by contrast, has not been invited.

All eyes

The BBC's Will Ross, reporting from the conference, says all eyes will be on Mr Kibaki.

He says Mr Kibaki is likely to brief at least some of the African leaders on events in Kenya, especially the talks between government and opposition.

The Kenyan crisis may then be pushed away, which could be convenient for an organisation which often struggles to tackle the continent's problems with any great urgency, he says.

Despite Mr Konare's plea, the official theme of the AU summit is industrialisation.

But other subjects are likely to include


Sudan, where the AU and the UN have promised to create the world's largest peacekeeping force in Darfur
Somalia, where members are keen to strengthen the small Ugandan and Burundian forces in the country, and
the AU's own internal organisation
Our correspondent says many Africans hope other urgent issues such as Zimbabwe and the Democratic Republic of Congo will also be tackled.

Fighting Spreads In Western Kenya

At least 17 people are reported to have been killed in another day of violence in western Kenya, apparently linked to last month's disputed elections.
The victims are said to have been beaten, hacked or burned to death by mobs as fighting spread to Naivasha.

The town is about 60km (37 miles) south of Nakuru, also the scene of recent inter-ethnic fighting.

Former UN chief Kofi Annan has been holding talks to try to end the month-long political deadlock in Kenya.

He met opposition leader Raila Odinga in the capital, Nairobi, on Sunday, and called on the two rival parties to nominate officials for further talks.

Mr Annan visited the violence-racked Rift Valley on Saturday, and later said he had seen tragic, heart-wrenching scenes, and "gross and systematic abuse of human rights".

Mr Odinga accuses his rival, President Mwai Kibaki, of stealing December's presidential election.

Dozens of people are reported to have been killed in Rift Valley region in the past few days. In all at least 750 people have died since the disputed election, and about a quarter of a million have been made homeless.

Hacked to death

The fighting in Naivasha is thought to have broken out late on Saturday, descending quickly into sickening brutality, says the www.dnewsbreak.blogspot.com's Adam Mynott in Nairobi.

Reports are unclear but at least nine people are said to have been hacked or clubbed to death as they tried to flee mobs with machetes.



In other cases people were locked inside their homes, which the mobs then ignited with petrol. At least eight charred bodies were said to have been recovered.

Police tried to disperse youths blocking the main road by firing over their heads. By Sunday afternoon the town was reported to be much calmer.

The mobs appeared to from the Kikuyu tribe of President Kibaki, which bore the brunt of the violence that erupted after the election.

"We have moved out to revenge the deaths of our brothers and sisters who have been killed, and nothing will stop us," said Anthony Mwangi, hefting a club in Naivasha.

"For every one Kikuyu killed, we shall avenge their killing with three," he told the Associated Press news agency.

Some of those fleeing the violence have taken shelter in some of the horticultural farms around Naivasha, on the main road between Nakuru and Nairobi, our correspondent says.

The area's huge horticulture and flower-growing industry employs more than 20,000 people, and supplies a third of Europe's cut flowers.

Further north, Kenya's fourth biggest city Nakuru has also been the scene of deadly violence between rival Luo and Kikuyu communities.

Clashes erupted on Thursday between fighters armed with machetes, spears and bows and arrows.

There were no reports of further fighting from Nakuru on Sunday. But the ruins of torched buildings smouldered, and a reporter for news agency AFP said bodies lay in the city's deserted slums.

Annan call

Meanwhile, further south in Nairobi, Mr Annan has embarked on a sixth day of talks aimed at mediating a solution to the crisis.

He met Mr Odinga, after meeting Mr Kibaki on Saturday.

On Saturday, he visited Eldoret in the Rift Valley, scene of some of the worst post-election violence took place and spoke to refugees living in camps.
"We saw gross and systematic abuse of human rights, of fellow citizens and it is essential that the facts be established and those responsible held to account," he said.

Fundamental changes, he added, were needed in Kenya to prevent a repetition of inter-ethnic violence.

"We cannot accept that periodically, every five years or so, this sort of incident takes place and no-one is held to account," he said.

African Union chief Alpha Oumar Konare also urged Kenya to seek a political solution to its problems.