Eight hundred Chadian peacekeepers
are being withdrawn from the Central African Republic following reports of their involvement in the shooting deaths of at least 32 civilians:
"In addition to the civilian deaths, the Chadian forces within MISCA [International Support Mission to the Central African Republic] have also been accused of failing to coordinate their actions with other peacekeepers, at times engaging in rogue activities including helping the Muslim rebels known as Seleka to move freely about the country, human rights groups say."
"'They consider themselves the saviors of the Central African Republic who've evacuated so many tens of thousands of Muslims and any kind of criticism is just unacceptable from their point of view,' [Human Rights Watch's Peter] Bouckaert said. 'Their role is very important in the Central African Republic but at the same time a situation where they can just do as they please and fire on the civilian population and facilitate Seleka movements is just not acceptable.'"
It will be important to see what disciplinary action, if any, is taken against Chadian military personnel with respect to the killings.
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