Ongoing war in CAR – Who is who?

The government of the Central African Republic (CAR) signed a peace agreement with militant groups that control most of the country, in Sudanese capital Khartoum on February 6.

The signing of the agreement followed ten days of talks between the government and 14 armed groups in the presence of Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir and President Faustin-Archange Touadera of the Central African Republic. Representatives of the United Nations were present too.

The terms of the deal had not been announced yet. Nonetheless, the deal, according to political observers, included articles for power-sharing, decentralization and security arrangements. It also included articles for the integration of militants into security agencies.

Agreement framework

During the negotiation process, the militant groups wanted to get the post of prime minister for themselves, as a demonstration of power-sharing. However, this point was not included in the deal.

Most of the groups attending the talks in Khartoum were members of the alliance of militia groups, known as Seleka. Some of the leaders of the militia groups work as presidential advisors.

This is the eighth deal since the eruption of the crisis in the Central African Republic, one of the poorest states in the African Continent. It also occurs six years after the sectarian conflict between the Muslim Seleka and Christian Anti-balaka groups started.

But this raises questions on the value of the agreement and whether it will bring the crisis in the Central African Republic to an end.

Sectarian violence has shattered all hopes for stability in this country. Militia groups vowed to stop resorting to violence more than one time before. These groups control almost 70% of the territories of the Central African Republic.

This is why the Khartoum agreement opens the door for a ceasefire and preventing the redeployment of government troops in areas now controlled by the militia groups.

The militia groups will operate joint patrols with the army to preserve security and bring order to the aforementioned areas.

Beginning of the crisis

The civil war in the African country involves the government, rebels from the Seleka coalition, and the anti-balaka militias.

The government of President Francois Bozize fought with rebels until a peace agreement was signed in 2007. The current conflict arose when the Seleka rebels accused the government of failing to abide by the peace agreements and captured many towns at the end of 2012.

The capital was seized by the rebels in March 2013, Bozize fled the country, and the rebel leader Michel Djotodia declared himself president.

Renewed fighting began between the Seleka and the Anti-balaka militias. In September 2013, President Djotodia disbanded the Seleka coalition, which had lost its unity after taking power, and in January 2014, Djotodia resigned.

He was replaced by Catherine Samba-Panza, but the conflict continued. In July 2014, ex-Seleka factions and Anti-balaka representatives signed a ceasefire agreement in Brazzaville.

By the end of 2014, the country was partitioned with the Anti-Balaka controlling the south and west, from which most Muslims had been evacuated, and ex-Seleka groups controlling the north and east.

Much of the tension is over religious identity between Muslim Seleka fighters and Christian Anti-balaka. Other contributing factors include ethnic differences among ex-Seleka factions and historical antagonism between agriculturalists, who largely comprise Anti-balaka, and nomadic groups, who constitute most Seleka fighters.

More than 1.1 million people have fled their homes in a country of about 5 million people, the highest ever recorded in the country.

Ramifications

The launch of a federal system has been at the center of debates in the Central African Republic for almost 20 years now. Nonetheless, warring factions failed to reach an agreement on this system.

Some factions within the Seleka coalition say the government had already given up control of some territories.

Most of the diamond and gold fields are located in the northeastern part of the Central African Republic. These are the areas controlled by the Seleka coalition.

Some people view the conflict in the country as one over resources and power, given the fact that the Central African Republic is one of the largest producers of precious minerals.