Bodies of Central African Army soldiers are being flown back to the capital Bangui after clashes with rebels along the border with Chad. It is difficult to identify the perpetrators of the attack.
A journalist with Le Citoyen newspaper in Bangui, who preferred not to be named, said the bodies of 13 soldiers have already been flown back. He said preparations are being made for their funeral.
He also says there is a mixture of panic and sadness as violence seems to be reigniting in remote parts of the chronically unstable northern Central African Republic.
U.N. officials say more than 30 people were killed in recent clashes near an army camp. The dead also included regional peacekeepers and insurgents.
An official described the insurgents as armed groups belonging to rebel groups destabilizing the region.
The C.A.R. defense minister blamed rebels from neighboring Chad, but Central African rebels have also been active in the region.
C.A.R. President Francois Bozize took power following his own rebellion, before winning elections. C.A.R. military officials gave a much higher death toll of the recent fighting.
Mr. Bozize is close to Chadian President Idriss Deby who accuses Sudan of backing the Chadian rebels. Sudan, which is fighting the Darfurian rebellion, denies this. Sudan, Chad and the C.A.R intersect in an increasingly volatile border region.
The complicated web of insurgency groups has created tens of thousands of refugees who often encounter renewed violence or recruitment in the camps where they seek refuge.