Background on the Conflict in Central African Republic: The mostly Muslim Seleka forces, who seized power in March 2013, have been responsible for massive human rights abuses documented by Human Rights Watch, including massacres, rapes, executions, torture, and the burning of hundreds of villages. As a direct result of the Seleka’s widespread abuses, nearly a fifth of the country’s people have fled their homes, living in dire humanitarian conditions in the bush or camps for displaced persons. In September, the mostly Christian anti-balaka militias began fighting back, and over the past two months have intensified revenge attacks on Muslim communities, with massacres, executions, torture, and the widespread burning and looting of Muslim homes, plunging the country deeper into bloodshed. Fearing these atrocities, Muslim residents have fled numerous northwestern towns, such as Bossangoa and Bouca, where there was once a significant and longstanding Muslim presence. In January 2014, Michel Djotodia, the former Seleka leader appointed president in August 2013, stepped down from power at a summit in Ndjamena, Chad, where the transitional national council for the Central African Republic met to begin the process of choosing a new interim president. Catherine Samba-Panza, the former mayor of Bangui, was sworn in on January 23, 2014. She inherits a very weak government, humanitarian crisis, and ongoing conflict with regional implications. Retrieved from hrw.org/news/2014/02/05/central-african-republic-seleka-fighters-regroup-north
Posted on: Sun, 09 Feb 2014 05:19:16 +0000
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