Cape Town – South Africa’s military attaché to Uganda said on Friday that the country was unlikely to go it alone in Central African Republic (CAR) after reports emerged that SANDF troops were gathering in Kampala for a new mission.

AP reported that Colonel Selby Moyo denied reports that South Africa was seriously considering sending troops into CAR with the intention of retaking the capital, Bangui, from the rebels.

Moyo said South Africa was unlikely to go it alone and would need the backing of another African country. 

He said the government is keeping military personnel in Uganda “until the decision to reinforce or withdraw” from the Central African Republic is made.

On Thursday, Reuters quoted a senior Ugandan officer as saying that South African troops were gathering in Uganda for a new mission in Central Africa Republic to “avenge” their fallen comrades, and topple the Seleka rebels, after 13 South African soldiers were killed during clashes with the rebels at the weekend.

The officer, who asked not to be named, told Reuters: “The intention of the South Africans is to re-organise themselves and then redeploy massively in CAR and topple these rebels.

“They were humiliated and they want to avenge,” the officer said, asking not to be named.

Eyewitness News had reported that troops were gathering at Kampala’s Entebbe air base with plans to hit back against the rebels.

Meanwhile, Central African Republic’s new president, Michel Djotodia, whose rebel forces took control of the capital Bangui last weekend, said he would request help from former colonial power France and the United States to retrain his country’s ill-disciplined and demoralised army, which was easily overrun by fighters from the Seleka rebel coalition.

His comments appeared to mark a change of tack from his predecessor Bozize’s close ties to South Africa, with which he had signed a fresh bilateral defence agreement in January.