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One of the most powerful rebel groups in the Central African Republic announced on Friday that its boss had died from wounds received during an attack in November.
Sidiki Abass, head of the Return, Recovery and Rehabilitation (3R) group, died on March 25, the group, part of a coalition seeking to overthrow President Faustin Archange Touadera, said in a statement.
Abass, whose real name was Bi Sidi Souleymane, died in a hospital in the north of the country, he said, adding that he had been “seriously injured” during the attacks in the town of Bossembele on November 16.
His group is largely made up of the Fulani ethnic group, whose members are traditionally nomadic herders.
It was initially formed to ostensibly defend the Fulani in the northwest of the country, where conflicts between nomadic herders and farmers are common.
In December, 3R joined the Coalition of Patriots for Change, an alliance of some of the most powerful armed groups in the war-torn country.
The alliance launched an offensive two weeks before the December presidential elections in an attempt to prevent a Touadera victory and topple his government.
The well-equipped 3Rs were on the front line against pro-government forces, eventually reaching an area about 100 kilometers (roughly 60 miles) from the capital, Bangui.
UN and security sources questioned the group’s claim that he had been wounded on November 16, before the rebel offensive, and instead dated him to the initial fighting in December, when his convoy was ambushed.
Rumors of his death had spread since then, but were never confirmed by 3R.
The country’s army, with the help of hundreds of Rwandan soldiers and Russian paramilitaries, has led a counteroffensive since January, retaking most of the cities previously occupied by the rebels.
While the 3R has been repulsed, it remains a force in the northwest, aided by its knowledge of the terrain.
