A Russian representative in the Central African Republic who was seriously injured after opening a package bomb is in “stable and serious” condition, the Russian embassy in the country said.
Moscow had said on Friday that one of its proxies in the African nation was injured by a package explosion, an attack a prominent pro-Kremlin figure claimed France was behind.
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On Saturday, the Russian embassy in the country said his condition “remains stable and serious.”
In a Facebook post, the embassy said she was “the victim of a terrorist attack” and that “specialists were still fighting for her life.”
Central Africa has been fighting a civil war since 2013 and is at the center of Russia’s bid for strategic influence in Africa.
The last French troops deployed in the Central African Republic left on Thursday after a chill in relations caused by closer ties between Bangui and Moscow and the deployment of Russian forces, which some countries say include Wagner mercenaries.
Russia’s TASS news agency said Dmitry Sytyi, director of the House of Russia cultural center, received an “anonymous package” on Friday that exploded when opened.
France rejected the claim by the head of the Wagner group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, that Paris was involved.
“I have already requested the Russian Foreign Ministry to start the procedure to declare France a state sponsor of terrorism,” Prigozhin said in a statement issued by his company, Concord.
French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna told AFP on Friday that the information is “false and is a good example of Russian propaganda.”
France has sent up to 1,600 troops to help stabilize the Central African Republic after a 2013 coup sparked a sectarian civil war.
In 2018, Moscow sent trainers to the country, and in 2020 followed up with hundreds of paramilitaries to help President Faustin Archange Touadera defeat rebels advancing on the capital.
France, the United Nations and others say they are mercenaries for the Kremlin-backed Wagner group, which have been linked to atrocities and looting of resources.
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