Central African rebels clash with French forces

BANGUI, Mar 4 (Reuters) Rebels in the north of Central African Republic said they attacked French army positions in the town of Birao today after French warplanes bombed their troops, killing three of them.

Rebel spokesman Ahmat Amadine said the UFDR had taken control of Birao and its airport early on Sunday, a day after entering the isolated northeastern town.

''The French Mirages bombed our positions and we sustained three deaths and some wounded in our ranks,'' Amadine told Reuters.

''We responded by attacking the French positions and they have also taken several wounded.'' France's Defence Ministry said on Saturday that its troops had remained in Birao, together with government forces, despite the rebel incursion. A ministry official could not confirm whether fighting had taken place.

France sent special forces backed by helicopters and fighter jets to dislodge rebel fighters from Birao and a large swathe of its former colony in December, and has maintained forces in and around the town since.

Diplomats in Bangui say the ill-resourced government army has full control of as little as 2 per cent of the country, which is larger than mainland France.

The deeply impoverished, landlocked country has been racked by years of instability with a series of coups, army mutinies and rebel uprisings, especially in the northwest where over the past 18 months government troops have burned dozens of villages suspected of aiding rebels opposed to President Francois Bozize.

REUTERS SHB BST1956