A rebel leader tightened his grip on power in the Central African Republic yesterday following a weekend coup condemned by the African Union and the former colonial power, France.
Former army general Francois Bozize dramatically seized control of the capital, Bangui, on Saturday after 1,000 men armed with guns and rocket-launchers swept through the coup-prone city.
An estimated 13 people were killed in the lightening attack, which met with only scanty resistance from the mostly unpaid soldiers of President Ange-Felix Patasse, who was attending a meeting in nearby Niger.
The coup sparked a looting spree in the presidential palace, while government soldiers were seen shedding their uniforms.
Volleys of gunfire rang out across the city yesterday as rebel soldiers attempted to re-establish order.
Rebel fire forced President Patasse's jet to divert to Yaounde, the capital of neighbouring Cameroon, where he was yesterday holed up in a heavily guarded hotel room.
In a radio address to the nation, Gen Bozize said he had seized power because of "mismanagement" of the previous regime and "its inability to carry out its domestic responsibilities."
Dissolving the parliament and suspending the constitution, he promised democratic elections but did not specify when. "Our government is that of peace and reconciliation," he said. The African Union strongly condemned the coup, in which neighbouring Chad is suspected of involvement. A local reporter told the BBC last night that a large number of the rebels were believed to be Chadian nationals.
Although their country is rich in gold, diamonds and uranium, the people of Central African Republic are among Africa's poorest. Since independence from France in 1960 the country has been plagued by instability, with six attempted coups in the past six years alone.
President Patasse clung to power on previous occasions thanks to military support from both Libya and the Movement for the Liberation of Congo (MLC) rebels in neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo.
This time, however, Libya's Col Muammar Gadafy has not intervened while Jean-Pierre Bemba's MLC returned home across the Ubangi River by canoe. Gen Bozize is described as a down-to-earth figure with a popular touch.
Before leaving Bangui to lead the rebellion he could be seen wheeling around the battered streets in an old Citroen, waving to friends.
He lost the 1993 presidential elections to his one-time friend, Mr Patasse, and was widely suspected of involvement in a May 2001 attempted coup.