Matthieu Alexandre, AFP/Caritas International | Archival picture shows the entrance of the central mosque in Bangassou

Armed groups have agreed to allow for the evacuation of some civilians from a mosque in Bangassou, after two days of deadly fighting in the southeastern town in the Central African Republic.

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Around 1,000 Bangassou residents had sought refuge from attacks inside and then found themselves trapped there by the militias, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Central African Republic, Najat Rochdi said.

But as of late morning, women and children as well as the injured had been allowed to leave. An unknown number of men were still held hostage inside, Rochdi added.

A total of 26 bodies have so far been identified in the town and are being recovered by aid workers, according to the UN official.

Child soldiers

The violence throughout the weekend in the town of Bangassou, on the Congolese border, have involved hundreds of fighters with heavy weaponry and appeared to be aimed at Muslims.

The UN base there has also been targeted, prompting the deployment of extra troops to the remote town on Sunday in anticipation of further attacks. They had succeeded in partly securing the town by dusk, said Herve Verhoosel, spokesman for the UN mission (MINUSCA).

“The situation is extremely deplorable and we are doing everything to rapidly retake control of Bangassou,” MINUSCA chief Parfait Onanga-Anyanga told Reuters in an interview.

Asked about the civilian death toll, he added: “It is clear that we are looking at numbers that could easily reach 20 to 30.” Many of the fighters are child soldiers who appeared to be under the influence of drugs, he added.

Local Red Cross President Pastor Antoine Mbao Bogo said gunfire continued to ring out from the town on Sunday, blocking attempts by his organisation and others to reach the wounded and recover the dead.

Conflict worsening



In recent months, roaming militias spurred by ethnic and religious rivalries have stepped up violence despite pledges to take part in a government-led disarmament programme.

Aid workers say that militias seem to be exploiting security voids after Ugandan and French soldiers left in the past few months when their missions ended.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said on Sunday he was “outraged” by the attacks on the 13,000-strong mission that have killed six peacekeepers around Bangassou, an area previously sheltered from conflict.

Prime Minister Simplice Sarandji condemned the attacks in a statement on local radio on Sunday and said those responsible would be brought to justice.

Central African Republic has been plagued by inter-religious violence since 2013 when mainly Muslim Seleka fighters seized power and ousted then-President Francois Bozize, prompting reprisal killings from anti-balaka militias often drawn from the Christian minority.

More than 400,000 people in the former French colony are displaced internally and 2.2 million, or nearly half the population, are reliant on aid.

(FRANCE 24 with REUTERS)

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