Amnesty International says Muslims living in rural areas especially targeted as militias undertake "ethnic cleansing" in CAR

 

Militias have taken advantage of the political vacuum in Central African Republic (CAR), engaging in ethnic cleansing of Muslims in a bid to erase the community from the country, human rights group Amnesty International has said.

Muslims in the western half of the country were being repressed and forced to abandon their religion.

More than 30,000 Muslims are living in seven enclaves, guarded by UN troops, across the country, but for those living outside, especially in rural areas, they are being targeted with impunity

More than one million people have been displaced since Muslim-led Seleka rebels took control of Bangui, the capital, in March 2013

Following a spate of abuses by the Seleka rebels, vigilante groups known as anti-Balaka (anti-machete) emerged to fight off the new leadership

But the anti-Balaka, made up of animist and Christian fighters, also targeted the country's Muslim minority, seen as sympathetic to the Seleka.

The collapse of the state apparatus and the fragility of the transitional government have left parts of the country to the mercy of militia groups in the hinterlands

Though violence in CAR has tapered off since late 2014, the country remains largely insecure