AU troops arrive on Comoros island in invasion build-up

0 Comments | AFP, March, 2008

FOMBONI, Comoros (AFP) — More than 500 African Union troops arrived on the Comoros island of Moheli on Saturday to join local forces massed for a military offensive to retake the rebel island of Anjouan.

The Indian Ocean archipelago -- between Madagascar and Mozambique -- did not recognise the re-election of Anjouan leader Colonel Mohamed Bacar in June 2007 and a tense stand-off is now poised to turn into an AU-backed invasion of the island.

The number of AU soldiers swelled to more than 1,000 after the arrival of the latest contingents.

"One hundred and sixty-eight Sudanese soldiers landed at the port at 3:00 a.m. (0000 GMT) and more than 400 Tanzanians arrived in the morning," a top Comoros military source told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity....