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AU envoy appalled by grenade attack on civilians in CAR

30 March 2014 03:23 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. Special Representative of the Chairperson of the African Union (AU) Commission Jean Marie Michel Mokoko is appalled by Thursday's grenade attack on innocent civilians in the Central African Republic (CAR), which killed and injured several persons, said an AU statement Saturday, APA reports quoting Xinhua.

The special envoy, who is also the head of the African-led International Support Mission in the CAR, noted with profound dismay that an increasingly sophisticated arsenal of military-type assault weapons has been used in the recent spate of violence in the country.

The attackers, who targeted innocent civilians Thursday night at a funeral in a Bangui home, escaped from the crime scene and have not yet been identified or apprehended, according to the AU statement.

The AU official called on the CAR Transitional Authorities to do all in their power to "bring to justice the cowardly perpetrators of such atrocious acts."

He strongly urged community leaders, opinion leaders, religious leaders, political party leaders as well as leaders of civil society organizations to speak up and use their influence to help end the current violence in their country.

He particularly urged the local and international media to demonstrate a high sense of responsibility in reporting events in the CAR and refrain from further fanning the flames of hatred and animosity among the population.

The AU envoy also conveyed to the bereaved families the sincere condolences and deepest sympathy of the Chairperson of the AU Commission, Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, and wished a prompt and complete recovery to the injured.