BACKGROUND
After some months of relative peace and stabilization in the Central African Republic (CAR), since Faustin Archange Touadera was elected President in February 2016, armed militia started to take up violent incursions against civilians and rival armed groups in the Ouham Pendé region of the north-western CAR again. A dispute between cattle herders, escorted by ex-Seleka members and anti-Balaka “self-defence” forces on 11 June, escalated into a week of intense violence between the two armed groups, leaving about 25 000 to 30 000 people affected inside the CAR and prompting over 6,000 people to flee to neighboring countries. As of 3 July, 5,570 CAR refugees have been registered in southern Chad and 555 in Cameroon.
In Chad, UN agencies and partners together with the Chadian Commission Nationale d’Accueil et de Reinsertion des Refugies et de Rapatries (CNARR) are now catering for the needs of deeply traumatized persons, mainly women, children and elderly, stranded near Mbitoye town in southern Chad where they found refuge in the villages of Mini and Sourouh. The newly arrived refugees report having witnessed killings, kidnappings, looting and the burning of their homes.
As the Chad/CAR border remains closed, refugees risked to be arrested by the police when they crossed into Chad. While the security situation in Chad remains calm, the emergency team expects more refugees to arrive over the coming days.