Muslims ‘under siege’ in CAR

The Muslim community in the Central African Republic (CAR) is under siege amid the failure by the French and allied troops to disarm violent mobs in the country, a political analyst tells Press TV.

“The Muslim population in the Central African Republic is under siege. People who have even attempted to leave have been prevented from leaving,” said Abayomi Azikiwe, the editor of Pan-African News Wire, in a Saturday interview.

“There are mobs that are there [and] that are not being disarmed by the French troops or the EU troops or the African troops that are allied with France and the European Union,” he added.

On Saturday, Gunmen killed three Muslims in a drive-by shooting in the capital, Bangui.

Christian mobs have been attacking and killing Muslims on an almost daily basis in the Central African Republic in recent months.

“The destabilization and the precarious security situation inside the country have worsened since the escalation of the military intervention by Paris,” Azikiwe said.

The analyst warned that the onrushing crisis in the CAR will deteriorate unless a political solution is found for the situation.

Some 2,000 French troops, supported by a 6,000-strong African Union force known as MISCA, are currently stationed in the CAR, but they have so far failed to curb the violence.

France deployed its troops in December 2013 after the UN Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution giving Paris and the African Union the go-ahead to send troops to the strife-torn country.

On February 25, French lawmakers approved the extension of the country’s military intervention in the CAR beyond April.

The CAR has been facing deadly unrest since December last year, when Christian militia launched coordinated attacks against the mostly Muslim Seleka group, which had toppled the government in March 2013.

Last month, the violence in the African country reportedly claimed over 1,000 lives and forced about one million people to flee their homes.