Raiders have killed nine Chinese nationals in an attack on a mine in the Bambari region of the Central African Republic, a local mayor said.
“We have counted nine bodies and two wounded,” the mayor of Bambari, Abel Matchipata, told reporters on Sunday, adding that the victims were Chinese workers at a site run by the Gold Coast Group, 25 kilometres (15 miles) from his town.
The attack by “armed men” happened early in the morning, he added.
The local authorities did not release further details of the attack, nor was there any claim of responsibility.
According to international media reports, the victim’s bodies were transferred to a hospital in Bangui, where Chinese ambassador Li Qinfeng and CAR Foreign Minister Sylvie Baipo Temon attended.
China’s embassy in the Central African Republic has urged its citizens to avoid travelling outside the capital, Bangui, after a report that nine Chinese nationals were killed by rebels at a gold mine outside the city.
The embassy said in a statement on Sunday there had been many “vicious” security incidents against workers of foreign mining enterprises in the area, and Chinese citizens still outside Bangui were requested to evacuate immediately.
Civil conflict has hit the Central African Republic, one of the world’s poorest countries, since 2013 when armed groups ousted president Francois Bozize.
