SA soldiers killed while fighting coup in CAR

About six South African soldiers were killed yesterday while helping to avert a coup in the Central African Republic.

And as the threat to the South African soldiers from rapidly advancing rebels intensifies, a military analyst has said that the SANDF is unable to either reinforce or rescue them.

The danger to the South Africans is made more acute by the rebels' insistence that they are mercenaries. If captured soldiers are treated as such, there is a possibility that they will be shot.

A thin line of about 260 South African soldiers and a company of paratroops were yesterday the last line of defence in the battle for the capital of the Central African Republic, Banui, as the Seleka rebel coalition overran the capital and seized the presidential palace.

SA National Defence Force spokesman Brigadier-General Xolani Mabanga confirmed the deaths yesterday.

"I do not want to confirm numbers but I can confirm South African casualties in the Central African Republic," said Mabanga.

Reuters reported that at least six South African soldiers were killed in clashes with the rebels, quoting a witness.

"I saw the bodies of six South African soldiers. They had all been shot. Their vehicles were also destroyed. Other South African soldiers came to recover the bodies," the witness said.

Explaining the inability of the South African government to help its soldiers, military analyst Helmoed Heitma said: "We don't have the air transport to go in and have to rely on charter companies.

"How do you ask a charter company to fly into a hot airport?"

He said the air force had only about three operational Hercules C130 transport aircraft, nowhere near enough to fly in adequate numbers of reinforcements.

The aircraft were also needed to support South African peacekeeping troops in Darfur and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

"We probably would be able to extract them but then we need to beg the French [who are holding the international airport with about 1250 troops] to protect us at the airport," he said.

"If we want to fly in a heavier force to reinforce them [with heavier weapons or personnel carriers] we can't do that." Heitman said two plane loads of troops were flown in to reinforce the SANDF force in the Central African Republic on Friday, before hostilities reached a prohibitive level, and reportedly after an agreement between President Jacob Zuma and CAR President Francois Bozize, who was in South Africa on Friday.

The aircraft would probably have been civilian charters.

Neither Mabanga nor Presidency s pokesman Mac Maharaj were prepared to comment.

"I am not aware of more troops [being deployed]," Mabanga said.

The SANDF has been training the CAR army since 2007. In January, the SANDF sent paratroops and others to protect the trainers after the security situation deteriorated, said Mabanga.

Mabanga would not reveal the number of South African troops in the CAR but Heitman said there was an "upper limit" of about 400 soldiers in the country .

"There have been reports of anything between eight to 10 dead, with a total of 10 to 40 casualties and rumours of a number of SANDF troops being taken prisoner," he said.

"The rebels regard the South African soldiers as mercenaries," said Heitman.

Before the reinforcements arrived, South Africa had a company of paratroops, some special forces troops, and some engineers and medical personnel in the CAR. This, Heitman said, would amount to about 260 personnel.

The situation in the CAR deteriorated after the rebels accused Bozize of reneging on a ceasefire signed on January 11.

The rebels quickly won ground, marching on the capital, where SANDF forces came under attack for the first time on Saturday.

Mabanga said this attack was repelled. He said the SANDF was assessing the situation in the CAR, and would decide whether to attempt to withdraw or to reinforce its force.

Heitman said South Africa was overstretched by peacekeeping operations in Africa.

"We are trying to play a big-boy game - but we don't have the tools," he said.