France Ends Sangaris Military Operation In Car

France is ending its military mission in the Central African Republic (CAR), three years after it intervened to stop mass killing after a rebellion ousted former president Francois Bozize.

The withdrawal of the 2,000 French troops comes as a fresh wave of killings has rocked CAR.

France says Sangaris succeeded in its mission to stop fighting in CAR.

Some 350 French soldiers will remain in the country to provide back up to Minusca, the UN mission in the country.

With the end of Operation Sangaris, Minusca will be left in sole charge of security in CAR.

But there is little faith in its ability to prevent violence from flaring up again, says BBC Africa’s security correspondent Tomi Oladipo.

Minusca has more than 10,000 troops on the ground but it has failed to disarm militia groups and there have been fresh clashes in different parts of the country.

Leaving a void
On Thursday, 15 people died in clashes between the mainly Muslim former Seleka rebels and the largely Christian vigilante anti-Balaka group, Minusca said.

While six police officers and four civilians died in an ambush on Friday.

This came a week after four people were killed during protests calling for the withdrawal of Minusca from the country.

The general disdain for Minusca has led many to feel that the exit of the French forces will leave a void that the militia groups could exploit, our correspondent says.

BBC