The commander of the regional African force FOMAC has warned rebels in the Central African Republic against any attempt to take Damara, the last strategic town between them and the country’s capital Bangui. “Let it be clear, we will not give up Damara,” General Jean-Felix Akaga said on Wednesday. “If the rebels attack Damara that would amount to a declaration of war and would mean that they have decided to engage the 10 central African states,” he told reporters in Bangui. “I honestly don’t think they will go that far.” Akaga said Bangui was well secured by FOMAC troops and reiterated that Damara remained the last key government-controlled town before the capital located 75km away. “The red line is Damara,” he said. The rebels, who began their campaign a month ago and have taken several key towns and cities, have accused Central African Republic leader Francois Bozize of failing to honour a 2007 peace deal. They said they had halted their advance on the capital on Wednesday and would start peace talks, averting a clash with regionally-backed troops in the mineral-rich nation. The announcement gave only a limited reprieve for President Francois Bozize as the rebels told Reuters they might insist on his removal in the negotiations in Gabon’s capital Libreville. “I have asked our forces not to move their positions starting today because we want to enter talks in Libreville for a political solution,” rebel spokesman Eric Massi told Reuters by telephone from Paris.