Africa
EU to impose select bans on Guinea
Captain Moussa Dadis Camara of Guinea gestures during a meeting with political parties and local people at the military camp Alpha Yaya Diallo in Conakry December 27, 2008. Photo/REUTERS
LUXEMBOURG, Tuesday
The European Union agreed today to impose an arms embargo on Guinea over the killing of anti-government protesters and said it would restrict the travel and freeze the assets of individuals involved.
The decision steps up pressure on Guinea’s military junta over a crackdown in which a local rights group said more than 150 people were killed on September 28.
The West Africa regional group Ecowas has already imposed an arms embargo on Guinea, the world’s biggest exporter of bauxite, the raw ore used to make aluminium.
Military junta
EU Foreign ministers agreed on the sanctions at a meeting in Luxembourg. They will target the military junta, Captain Moussa Dadis Camara and his ruling Council for Democracy and Development (CNDD).
“The Council (of Foreign ministers) has decided to adopt measures targeting the members of the CNDD and individual associated with them, responsible for the violent crackdown or the political stalemate,” an EU statement said.
The US and the 27-country EU have called on Capt Camara to resign and the International Criminal Court is investigating the killings in Guinea.
Ecowas imposed its arms embargo on Guinea this month and said the crackdown, in which thousands of people were also wounded, posed a real threat to stability of the region. (Reuters)
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