20 killed, dozens injured in recent Central African Republic clashes

Africa, News December 23, 2014 , by IRIA No Comments

At least 20 people have been killed and dozens others injured in clashes between armed groups in the Central African Republic.

The violence broke out on Friday, when anti-balaka militias, formed by the Christian majority, launched an attack against former rebels of the largely-Muslim Seleka alliance in the central region of Bambari.

Bambari has been the scene of fierce clashes that have left more than 100 people dead and at least 200 injured since June.

The Central African Republic descended into chaos last December, when Christian armed groups launched coordinated attacks against the Seleka group, which had toppled the government in March 2013.

The Christian militias have launched a bloody campaign against the Muslim minority, forcing a large number of them to flee.

Human Rights Watch (HRW) has said that the United Nations peacekeepers are collaborating with the country in order to prevent hundreds of Muslims trapped in its western region from leaving.

According to the international rights group, 1,750 Muslims, mostly ethnic Peuhl herders, have been trapped in Yaloke, Carnot, and Boda since late 2013 and early 2014, after fleeing attacks by Christian militiamen.

The HRW said that the interim government of CAR was preventing the trapped Muslims living in poor conditions from leaving the country for fear of being accused of ethnic cleansing.

HN/HSN/SS