War of words after rebels kill up to 400 in Chad raids

UP TO 400 people were killed in Chad in a recent attack carried out by Sudanese and local Janjaweed militia aided by Chadian rebels, the United Nations refugee agency UNHCR said.

Chadian authorities estimated last week that at least 65 people died in the early morning attacks on 31 March on two villages in eastern Chad, Tiero and Marena, home to 8,000.

The new figure followed a visit to the remote area on Sunday by UN agencies, which described the scene as "apocalyptic". Ron Redmond, a UNHCR spokesman, said: "Estimates of the number of dead now range between 200 and 400. Most of the dead were buried where their bodies were found [so] we may never know their exact number."

Meanwhile, Sudan and Chad traded threats and accusations yesterday over the cross-border attacks. The Sudanese government vowed a firm response, including possible military action, to what it said was a Chadian army attack on Monday that killed 17 of its soldiers.

While Chad denied any deliberate assault on its neighbour, it acknowledged its forces had clashed with Sudanese troops after crossing the border to pursue Sudanese-backed rebels it said were launching raids.

A Sudanese army spokesman said: "We will consider all responses, political, diplomatic and military." But Chad's government warned: "If Sudan opts for direct aggression, Chad will use all means to respond."

The raids appear to be a spillover of violence from Sudan's conflict-torn Darfur region.

Dai Bingguo, the Chinese deputy foreign minister, and John Negroponte, the US deputy Secretary of State, discussed Darfur in a phone call yesterday.

"The two sides discussed issues concerning the implementation of the Annan plan," a Chinese foreign ministry spokes-man said, referring to a peace plan put forward by Kofi Annan, the former UN chief, to deploy a hybrid African Union-UN peacekeeping force in the region. China, which buys much of Sudan's oil and wields veto power over UN resolutions, has faced criticism from the West and rights campaigners for rejecting the plan.

The UN team found decomposing bodies near the villages attacked on Sunday, including that of a 30-year-old father of eight. Hundreds of homes had been burned to the ground and there was an "overwhelming stench" from rotting animal carcases.

An eight-year-old boy told the UN that bullets "came like rainfall". A girl his age died of a head wound after being hit as she tried to escape, he said.

"It paints a portrait perhaps better described as a massacre," said Mr Redmond.

Khartoum, which human rights officials accuse of supporting the Janjaweed, denies responsibility for the raids.

Many who survived the initial attack died later from exhaustion and dehydration. Some 9,000 Chadians have since fled the surrounding area.

"The whereabouts of many remain unknown," Mr Redmond said.