Chinese nationals were being evacuated from Chad, a Foreign Ministry spokesman said Saturday.

Heavy fighting broke out on Friday near the capital, N'Djamena, between government soldiers and an allied rebel force hostile toward President Idriss Deby, sources said.

The fighting broke out in Massaguet, about 50 kilometers northeast of N'Djamena.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao said the situation might deteriorate. The ministry has quickly initiated an emergency response mechanism to organize the evacuation of overseas Chinese.

With the help of the Chinese embassy in Chad, 212 Chinese compatriots, including two from Taiwan, were evacuated to neighboring Cameroon. The embassy in Cameroon made relevant arrangements for the stranded Chinese.

Currently, about 80 Chinese remained in N'Djamena. The Chinese embassy in Chad was keeping close contact with them and would help to evacuate them as quickly as possible if necessary, Liu said.

The Department of Consular Affairs of the Chinese Foreign Ministry recently issued a warning telling Chinese not to tour Chad.
 
(Xinhua News Agency February 3, 2008)