CONGO: Ex-rebels attack UN convoy

[ This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations]

MINDOULI, 26 Apr 2005 (IRIN) - A group of former rebels, known as the Ninjas, fired guns into the air and held a grenade to the face of a UNESCO official during an attack on a UN convoy in the southern part of the Republic of Congo, a UN official told IRIN on Tuesday.

The country representative for the UN Development Programme (UNDP), Aurelien Agbenonci, said there were no casualties. However, the ex-rebels stole property belonging to the UN and the members of the convoy.

The former rebels, whose stronghold is the embattled Department of Pool to the north of the capital, Brazzaville, struck the convoy along the Loutéhété-Missafou road, between the towns of Kinkala and Mindouli, to the southwest of Brazzaville.

During the attack, Agbenonci said, the ex-rebels threatened the members of the convoy, who included heads of UN agencies and representatives of Norway and Sweden. The UNESCO representative, Robertine Roanamahary, had the grenade held to her face.

The UN agency officials on the mission were from UNESCO, UNDP, the Food and Agriculture Organization; and UN Population Fund. Their evaluation mission to the Pool Department was to determine the primary needs of the population who have been affected by years of civil war.

Agbenonci said members of the delegation launched a Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration (DDR) operation on Sunday in the Pool, before all the UN officials left for Kinkala by aircraft.

The government spokesman, Alain Akouala, condemned the attack and blamed the former Ninja leader, Frederic Bitsangou, alias Pasteur Ntoumi, for the incident.

"The government reaffirms its determination to pursue the disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration of ex-combatants in the Pool," Akouala said.

[ENDS]