Thursday, May 7, 2009

Claire and Stephanie have been released!

Thank you for praying! Two weeks after we began to "storm heaven" together for Claire Dubois and Stephanie, Medical workers in DarFur for Aide Medicale Internationale, they were released from captivity!
Our hope is that the One who has heard us on behalf of Claire and Stephanie Jodoin to turn hearts of the leaders, will also intervene in Chad in this turbulent time.
Read the full article with pictures of Claire and Stephanie, and let us rejoice together!

Chadian army, rebels clash in east: government

NDJAMENA (AFP) — Chadian troops clashed Thursday with rebels in the east of the country, both sides said, each claiming initial victory in the first direct confrontation since the rebels invaded from neighbouring Sudan.

"The first ground clashes have just taken place at Am-Deressa, 10 kilometres (six miles) south of Am-Dam," Communications Minister Mahamat Hissene said.

"The government forces gained the upper hand and mopping up operations are continuing."

He gave no casualty figures.

"There was violent fighting with the troops of (President Idriss) Deby, from 5:00 am (0400 GMT," rebel alliance spokesman Adberaman Koulamallah confirmed to AFP. "It was very violent. The fighting lasted for hours."

Koulamallah also claimed success, saying that the battle "turned in our favour. Government forces are completely routed. We occupy Am-Dam. The objective is still (the capital) Ndjamena."

Am-Dam is 110 kilometres north of Goz Beida and more than 100 kilometres south of Abeche, the two towns used as bases by most relief agencies working in east Chad to help 450,000 refugees and displaced people.

The UN refugee agency on Thursday said it has pulled all but two of 20 staff out of camps for 60,000 people because of instability caused by the insurgency since the rebels crossed into Chad from west Sudan on Monday.

The decision echoes one Wednesday by the UN World Food Programme in the same region, because three rebel forces were advancing across Chad from the eastern border, stating that their sights were set on the capital Ndjamena.

"All the other humanitarian agencies are going to do the same" because the situation is "too volatile and too unstable," Serge Male, representing the High Commissioner for Refugees in Chad, but he stressed that "we hope this won't last."

The UNHCR has meanwhile provided for "very short term" measures to keep about 20,000 Sudanese refugees at Koukou Angarana and about 40,000 Chadians displaced by previous internal conflicts, Male said.

The Chadian government has accused Sudan of backing the rebel assault that started on Monday, while the ink was scarcely dry on a peace pact between the fractious neighbours brokered in Doha by Qatar and Libya.

Rebels of the Union of Forces for Resistance (UFR) claimed in a statement that they captured government military vehicles during a brief land clash on Tuesday between Tizzi and Haraz Mangueigne.

Koulamallah claimed Thursday that the rebels had "more than a thousand vehicles," but said they had been attacked each day from the air by helicopters and bombers flying very high. "Our air defence works fine," he added. "That is not a problem."

The government has so far stated that it carried out one air attack on the rebels advancing across the hot, arid south of the central African country in four-by-four vehicles.

Diplomatic sources said that on Wednesday the rebels entered Am-Dam and Am-Timan, 180 kilometres south of Goz Beida, where they encountered no resistance.

However, the military activity, which follows a thwarted rebel bid last year to seize Ndjamena after they entered the capital, has led to mounting fears for some 450,000 refugees and displaced people in camps in eastern Chad.

UN chief Ban Ki-moon "is following developments in eastern Chad with increasing concern," the UN said in a statement late Wednesday, calling on Chad and Sudan to resume peace talks and urging respect for UN humanitarian operations.

Chadian Interior and Public Security Minister Ahmat Mahamat Bashir accused Sudanese President Omar El-Beshir of ordering "mercenaries" to attack Chad and vowed that the rebels would be wiped out.

Peace between Chad and Sudan is regarded as essential to any lasting settlement to a six-year-old uprising in Sudan's western Darfur region, where the Chadian rebels have rear bases.

In February last year, rebels battled their way to Ndjamena in western Chad in a bid to overthrow President Idiss Deby Itno before being beaten back with logistical help from some French forces.

Pray for peace in Chad.

Original Article: Click here

Chadian Rebels Advance on the Capital

Radio Netherlands, May 6: In Chad, rebels supported by Sudan have begun advancing towards the capital Ndjamena, says a spokesperson for the Chadian Union of Forces of the Resistance (UFR). The UFR is an alliance of eight rebel groups.

The spokesperson says there have been skirmishes between its forces and Chadian soldiers in the south-east of the country near the Sudanese and Central African Republic border. The rebels say they have destroyed 9 armored vehicles and captured 12 others.

Earlier this week, Chad accused Sudan of supporting an attack by the UFR. The Chadian rebels, who have bases in Sudan, reportedly crossed the border on Monday. The Sudan Tribune quoted Chad's Communications Minister Mahamat Hissene, who said the rebels had penetrated around 100 kilometers inside Chadian territory.

Sudan and Chad signed an agreement to normalize relations at the weekend in Doha, the capital of Qatar. Mr Hissene accused Sudan of sending armed forces across the border while "the ink has yet to dry on the Doha accord".

Today, May 7th, the Chad Minister of the Interior Ahmat Mahamat Bachir went on Chadian radio, saying that the rebels had been defeated. For their part, the rebels affirm that they are continuing to advance on the capital city. One thing is true, the fighting continues. Please pray for blessing on Chad in these tumultuous times, for Chadian families, aid workers, and other foreigners.

Click here to read the original article