The Comoros government has welcomed France's rejection of a request for political asylum by Anjouan's toppled rebel leader, Mohammed Bacar, but its refusal to extradite the ousted Colonel has sparked outrage in the impoverished Indian Ocean archipelago.

Over half a million dollars of much-needed emergency funding will help Anjouan, one of three islands in the Comoros archipelago, to address humanitarian needs and re-establish basic administrative structures after a recent military operation backed by the African Union (AU) allowed the central government regain control of the renegade island.