Central African Republic minister says intelligence services have learned of coup plot
By APSunday, March 14, 2010
Central African Republic official warns of coup
BANGUI, Central African Republic — A minister in the Central African Republic says the government has learned of a coup plot.
Public Safety Minister Jules Bernard Ouande says intelligence services believe plotters plan to overthrow the government next week. Ouande said late Saturday on national radio the putative putsch could include military members, though he named no suspects.
He says the plotters may cut phone lines and use suicide bombers in the capital. He says the government is prepared to fend off a revolt.
The mineral-rich country has been plagued by military revolts and other uprisings since independence from France in 1960. It is the world’s second poorest nation and has also been affected by spillover of the conflict in Sudan’s western Darfur region.
