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Central Africa Puts Down Coup Attempt
Soldiers attacked the home of Central African Republic President Ange Felix Patasse early on Monday in a failed coup attempt that left at least a dozen people dead, officials said.
Witnesses said the sound of gunfire had died down completely in the riverside capital of the former French colony, which was destabilized by a series of army mutinies in the 1990s.
"There was a coup attempt which failed, which began at 2 a.m. (0100 GMT) and lasted until this morning. Now the situation is calm, the attackers have been put to flight and are being sought by the presidential guard," presidential spokesman Prosper Ndouba told Reuters.
He said Patasse was "safe and sound and with his family."
Ndouba said seven members of the presidential guard were killed in the shootout as well as several of the attackers. Hospital doctors said at least two civilians died in cross-fire.
State radio called on people to denounce the attackers, many of whom were said to be dressed in civilian T-shirts and either jeans or combat trousers. The radio stopped broadcasting military music it began playing in the early hours.
At the United Nations in New York, Secretary-General Kofi Annan expressed dismay and condemned attempts to overthrow "an elected government by force."
He called on "all Central Africans, especially, political and other leaders to respect the democratic institutions of the country and to favor dialogue," according to a U.N. statement.
The United Nations last year ended a peacekeeping mission it sent in 1998 to replace a French-backed African force which restored order after the mutinies. But Annan warned in January that peace was in danger
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