Djibouti hunts for abuse suspects

Two of those accused were senior advisers to Djibouti's first president

A court in Djibouti has issued international arrest warrants for five French nationals suspected of sexually abusing children in their care.

The accused include two school teachers, a priest and two senior advisors to former Djibouti president Hassan Gouled Aptidon, a judge said.

The case relates to alleged incidents in the 1990s when the five unnamed suspects were working in Djibouti.

Two Djiboutians, now in their 20s, said they had been sexually assaulted.

They said other children had also been sexually assaulted at schools and orphanages in the country.

The current whereabouts of the five suspects are not known.

Abdoulkader Ibrahim Issack, the investigating magistrate handling the case, said the suspects "have been summoned in relation to the case but none of them has responded so far".

Hassan Gouled Aptidon ruled the former French colony on the Gulf of Aden from 1977 to 1999.