The Central African Republic has yet to fully emerge from a civil war fought partly along religious lines. Although the Islamist rebel group, Séléka, has been driven out of many parts of the country, attacks against Christians continue in the capital, Bangui, and in the mainly Muslim northeast. Christians have been forced to flee from their villages and are denied access to farming fields. Large groups of Christians live in extremely poor conditions in refugee camps.
Donors pledge $2.2bn to help Central African Republic recover
Oxfam says half the 4.8 million population of the Central African Republic needs humanitarian assistance. Open Doors International The President of the Evangelical Alliance in the Central African Republic has praised the international community’s pledge of US$2.2 billion to help reconstruct a county ravaged by three years of civil war. Around […]
UPDATE: At least 23 killed in fresh attack in north of C. African Republic
UPDATE (13 Oct.): Fighters from Central African Republic’s largely Muslim Séléka militia attacked refugees in Kaga Bandoro, in the country’s remote north on Wednesday (12 Oct.), reports Reuters. Thirteen people were stabbed or hacked to death, before U.N. peacekeepers repelled the attackers, killing at least 10 of them, officials said. Several […]
C. African Republic: pastor among scores killed
A local pastor (yet to be named) was among scores killed as members of the predominantly Muslim Seleka rebel group attacked communities around the town of Kaga Bandoro, 350km north of the Central African Republic capital, Bangui. In the village of Ndomete, the rebels killed 26 people as they went door […]
CAR’s new President brings hope, but hunger threatens ‘new start’
The Central African Republic is suffering from a continuing humanitarian emergency, and a now-serious threat of famine.Courtesy Open Doors International Today’s inauguration (30 March) of a new President in the Central African Republic (CAR) brings hope for a new beginning, and a brighter future for the war-torn country. After three […]
CAR: Pope Francis calls for unity between Catholics and Protestants
Pope Francis has completed his two-day visit to the Central African Republic, the final stop of his first African tour, which also took him to Kenya and Uganda. Among the three countries visited by the Pope, his stop in CAR was by far the most challenging and attracted lots of […]
Pope shares ‘worsening concerns’ over CAR
Pope Francis has voiced great concern over a fresh outbreak of sectarian violence which has left many killed and thousands displaced in the Central African Republic (CAR), Fides reports. “The painful events that have worsened an already delicate situation in the Central African Republic in recent days are of great concern. […]
Top pastor escapes death amidst renewed violence in CAR
The President of CAR’s Evangelical Alliance, Rev. Nicolas Guerekoyame-Gbangou, was targeted in an attack apparently triggered by the death of a young Muslim motorbike taxi driver.World Watch Monitor One of the top three religious leaders in the Central African Republic, who has won global recognition for his efforts to […]
20 killed in CAR after death of Muslim taxi driver
Twenty people were killed on Saturday and at least 100 injured after the death of a Muslim taxi driver in Bangui, the capital of the Central African Republic (CAR), says the BBC. The violence is the worst the city has experienced this year, with the largest death toll. The fighting […]
Religious freedom a ‘reality’ in recovering CAR
Left to right: Imam Oumar Kobine Layama, Msgr. Dieudonné Nzapalainga and Rev. Nicolas Guérékoyamé-Gbangou received the 2015 Sergio Vieira de Mello Prize at the UN office in Geneva, Switzerland on 19 Aug.World Watch Monitor The Central African Republic (CAR) is gradually recovering from the two-and-a-half-year crisis which ravaged the […]
Church and clerics attacked in CAR
In July 2014, a ceasefire was signed between the two main warring groups in the Central African Republic: a predominantly Muslim rebel coalition known as Séléka, and violent vigilante groups opposing their advance, which became known as the “anti-Balaka” (“Balaka” means “machete”). Former members of the now-disbanded Séléka rebel movement, […]