(30 Oct 1996) English/Kinyarwanda/Nat
Rwanda's military strongman Vice President Paul Kagame warned on Wednesday that his country was ready to go to war with Zaire.
Kagame also threatened further retaliation for Zairean shelling of Rwandan border areas.
The previous day Zairean shells rained down on the southwest Rwandan border town of Cyangugu on Tuesday and Rwandan troops returned fire.
The E-U special envoy to the region says urgent action is needed to prevent full scale war.
Rwandan and Zairean troops bombarded each other from opposite sides of the border with mortar fire Tuesday.
Although Rwanda insists it is not at war with Zaire, its Tutsi-dominated army fired on Zairean positions near the town of Cyangugu for more than an hour.
At least 100 rounds were fired and the lush green hills around the volcanic Lake Kivu echoed with the thud of mortars
The local people, as always, were caught in the cross fire.
The fighting stems from Zaire's attempt to expel ethnic Tutsis whose ancestors immigrated to eastern Zaire at least 200 years ago.
The Rwandan army is threatening further action in response to the Tuesday's shelling by Zairean troops.
Rwanda's military strongman is Vice President Paul Kagame.
Kagame is also defence minister and led Tutsi rebels to power in Rwanda in 1994.
Speaking on Wednesday, he said many people were killed and wounded in the attack and warned there would be consequences.
SOUNDBITE:
"Yesterday, somebody made a very big mistake, and ordered whoever did it without order, and spent some hours shelling our territory in Cyangugu and they killed the people and wounded others. That has got its own consequences, of course."
SUPERCAPTION: Paul Kagame, Rwandan Vice President
He would not give details of the type of response he was planning - but his message was clear.
SOUNDBITE:
"I cannot be specific about all the detail and the kind of response there is going to be but suddenly, logically if you slap me in the face before I hit back, I want to - I am not hitting the face, I am hitting somewhere else so I have to think and see where I am going to hit.
Question: But you will hit?
Answer: There is no question about it. "
SUPERCAPTION: Paul Kagame, Rwandan Vice President
As the fighting intensifies, the refugee crisis continues to deepen.
This refugee woman, Agatha and her child were saved by two soldiers and escorted to safety to border.
Many of the refugees are afraid to go home for fear of reprisals from the new Tutsi-led government.
Others are prevented from leaving by the Hutu militias that have taken over the camps, using them as bases from which to attack Rwanda.
Agatha spoke of her ordeal.
SOUNDBITE: (Kinyarwanda)
"They took me to the hill next to the army base and started hitting me and threatened to take my child to kill him. "
SUPERCAPTION: Agatha, refugee
The E-U Special Envoy to the Great Lakes region, said the heads of states of the region must step in as they did when the Burundi crisis exploded.
SOUNDBITE:
"If a war explodes here, this war will affect the entire region so we think that the Heads of States of the region should look at that carefully. And since they have proved to be effective in the case of Burundi, when the Burundi peace exploded. And they reacted quickly and effectively. I think we should use this mechanism as soon as possible, to try to defuse this crisis.
(Q. How likely is it that war will be happening in the region?)
Answer: If nothing would be done, it is almost inevitable.
Find out more about AP Archive: www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork
Twitter: / ap_archive
Facebook: / aparchives ​​
Instagram: / apnews
You can license this story through AP Archive: www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...