BANGUI
The Seleka Muslim militia in the Central African Republic has suspended its second vice president Mohamed Moussa Dhaffane over accusations of "non-observance of the hierarchy and high treason."
The militia coalition made the announcement in a statement by its political bureau on Wednesday evening, but without giving further details.
A member of the Seleka politburo, who asked to remain anonymous, told Anadolu Agency that the decision was taken by first vice president Adam Noureddine and approved by the militia chief of staff Joseph Ndeko and the coalition's president Michel Djotodia, a former president of the war-torn country.
The source, however, declined to specify the reasons for the suspension.
But spokesman for the Seleka's general staff Ahmadinejad Ibrahim told AA that Dhaffane was suspended for having signed a ceasefire deal last month in Brazzaville with the anti-Balaka Christian militia without consulting his superiors in advance.
"Prior to the Brazzaville talks, the main Seleka leaders went to Cotonou [capital of Benin] to discuss the agreement with Djotodia who lives there and follow the guidelines to be formulated by the latter," Ibrahim said.
"But Dhaffane was not involved in the talks and did not take the meeting into account when he decided to sign the agreement on his own without referring to his superiors in advance," he explained.
The warring anti-Balaka and Seleka militias signed an agreement last month in Brazzaville, the capital of the neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo, pledging to end hostility and ensure the free movement of goods and people.
Land-locked CAR descended into anarchy last year when Seleka ousted then president Francois Bozize, a Christian who had come to power in a 2003 coup, and installed Djotodia, a Muslim, as an interim president.
The country was plagued by tit-for-tat sectarian violence between seleka fighters and Christian militiamen.
Anti-Muslim violence surged after Djotodia stepped down in January and was replaced by Catherine Samba-Panza, a Christian who formerly served as mayor of the capital Bangui.
Christians, who account for the majority of the country's population, accuse Muslims of supporting Seleka militants blamed for attacking Christian homes, looting property and carrying out summary executions during their brief reign.
www.aa.com.tr/en
