AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE,
NHAMBALANG, Guinea-Bissau: Guinea-Bissau's army launched a new bombardment against Senegalese rebels Thursday, days after the country's president said all their bases had been “completely wiped out.”
An AFP correspondent said shelling targetted a “newly discovered” hideout in northern Guinea-Bissau of rebels loyal to Salif Sadio who are fighting for the independence of the neighbouring southern Senegalese region of Casamance.
Shells fell around the town of Nhambalang, some 20 kilometres (12 miles) west of Sao Domingos, where fighting had been concentrated earlier.
Local officials of humanitarian organisations, including the International Commiteee of the Red Cross and Caritas International, said around 1,000 people had fled their homes in Nhambalang and neighbouring Djacoumoune.
Distribution of food to the refugees in Kouladje, five kilometres from Nhambalang, had also been disrupted before the shelling died out in the afternoon.
It was not known if there were any casualties among the civilians or the rebels, a hardline faction of the Casamance separatist movement who have refused to take part in a peace process begun by the Senegalese government.
The army offensive, begun on March 15, is aimed at wiping out Sadio's rear bases in Guinea-Bissau territory.
Speaking on a visit to Mauritania at the weekend, Guinea-Bissau's President Joao Bernardo Vieira said his army had “completely wiped out” the rebel bases and Sadio's forces had been “routed”.
