10 September, 2009
Senegal: Civil war leaves town deserted
Diabir, Senegal
Increased fighting between separatist rebels and army loyalists in Southern Senegal has left one small town in rural Senegal deserted.
Residents of Diabir, an outcast in Ziguinchor, are living in dire straits amid violence between the Senegalese Army and the Movement for the Democratic Forces of Casamance (MFDC), which forced them to flee.
The conflict began in 1982, when MFDC separatists launched a rebellion against the Senegalese government. [GR]