NDJAMENA - Chadian rebels seized a second town Sunday as they headed west towards their stated objective, the capital, but government authorities dismissed its capture as a publicity stunt. Rebels forces took the eastern city of Am Dam ‘without much resistance’ from government forces at around midday, said their spokesman -- a day after having briefly occupied Goz Beida, closer to the Sudan border.
‘Our objective is not to take towns but to clear obstacles on the road to Ndjamena,’ Ali Gueddei, the spokesman for the National Alliance grouping of rebel factions, told AFP. ‘We are not occupying them. Our objective is the Golden Fleece Ndjamena,’ he added.
The Chadian authorities confirmed that Am Dam had fallen to the rebels but said it was a ‘PR stunt’ by the armed groups. ‘The rebels are effectively in Am Dam but it's a locality where there is neither a garrison nor troops deployed,’ said a Chadian military source. ‘The rebels are avoiding pitched battles and are carrying out raids on unprotected areas for publicity purposes,’ a high-ranking Chadian official told AFP.
| It'll be a publicity stunt when they occupy the capital, too. |
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