Tag: Central African Republic

US State Department adds Pakistan to religious-freedom watch list

January 5, 2018 Global News -- No Particular Country Central African Republic, China, Eritrea, Iran, Minorities, Myanmar, Nigeria, North Korea, Pakistan, Religious freedom, Russia, Sanctions, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, USA, Uzbekistan, Vietnam

Burial of victims of a suicide attack on the Methodist Bethel Church in Quetta, Pakistan, on Sunday 17 December 2017 in which at least 9 people were killed. (Photo: World Watch Monitor)

The US State Department has placed Pakistan on a “Special Watch List” for severe violators of religious freedom, it announced yesterday (4 January) with the publication of its annual list of ‘Countries of Particular Concern’. The announcement comes as the US government cuts security aid to Pakistan, saying the country . . . Read More

CAR’s religious leaders ‘must be empowered’ to restore peace

December 13, 2017 Central African Republic Central African Republic, Nicolas Guérékoyamé-Gbangou, Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, Seleka

Delegates at an international conference in Senegal called on the international community to do more to strengthen the role of religious leaders in peace and reconciliation in the Central African Republic. The conference, which was held in Dakar from 8-11 December, was organised by the International Dialogue Centre, the Network . . . Read More

CAR Christians and Muslims risk crossing ‘red line’ to establish peace

December 7, 2017 Central African Republic Anti-balaka, Central African Republic, Religious freedom, Seleka, UN

At the market in Boda, a mining town in the southwest of the Central African Republic, Christians and Muslims come together to purchase goods set on wooden tables along the dusty roadside. It’s a picture of peaceful coexistence that would be unthinkable in some parts of a country that has . . . Read More

CAR: ‘They wanted to silence the preacher who converts Muslims to Christianity’

December 5, 2017 Central African Republic Anti-balaka, Bangui, Central African Republic, PK5, Seleka

The Central Mosque of Bangui in the predominantly Muslim neighbourhood of PK5. (Photo: World Watch Monitor)

Four years ago today, an eruption of violence in the capital of the Central African Republic, Bangui, left dozens dead and shattered the lives of many others. An attempt by Anti-Balaka (“anti-machete”) vigilantes to oust rebel leader Michel Djotodia, who had swept across the country into the capital to proclaim . . . Read More

CAR: 7 dead after attack on peace concert in Bangui

November 14, 2017 Central African Republic Bangui, Bocaranga, Central African Republic, PK5, UN

Four people were killed and 20 injured after a grenade attack at a peace concert in Bangui, the capital of the Central African Republic, on Saturday (11 November). The event, which was held at a bar in the restive, mostly Muslim PK5 neighbourhood, had been organised by young Christians and . . . Read More

Central African Republic IDPs angry at UN failure to protect them

October 31, 2017 Central African Republic Bangassou, Bocaranga, Bozoum, Central African Republic, Gambo, UN

When armed men attacked the north-western town of Bocaranga in the Central African Republic in September, thousands fled, including women and children. Madeleine, nine, was among them. She didn’t think of taking a toy; instead, she strapped her 15-month-old baby sister Cesare on her back and ran. With others, she . . . Read More

Central African Republic: where government rule only runs in the capital

October 24, 2017 Central African Republic Anti-balaka, Bangui, Bocaranga, Bozoum, Central African Republic, Dieudonné Nzapalainga, Faustin-Archange Touadéra, Gambo, Kaga Bandoro, Nicolas Guérékoyamé-Gbangou, PK5, Seleka, UN, Zemio

I’m just back from a visit to the Central African Republic (CAR) – where there is a sense of emergency again. Security has dramatically deteriorated across the country: President Faustin-Archange Touadéra has failed to establish his authority beyond the capital, Bangui, 18 months after his election. To my surprise, I . . . Read More

UN chief visits CAR, where lack of aid is leading to starving children

October 24, 2017 Central African Republic Anti-balaka, Bambari, Bangassou, Central African Republic, Dieudonné Nzapalainga, Faustin-Archange Touadéra, Seleka

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is in the Central African Republic (CAR) to draw attention to the world’s “forgotten crisis” and its heavy toll on aid workers and UN peacekeepers. The visit is happening a week after the UN Humanitarian Coordinator for the country told media that the deteriorating security situation . . . Read More

UN calls for aid as deadly violence continues in CAR

September 14, 2017 Central African Republic Anti-balaka, Central African Republic, Gambo, Seleka, UN, Zemio

The UN General Secretary has called on world leaders to assist the Central African Republic, as the crisis there has deepened over the last three months. “In the Central African Republic, we have seen a 37 per cent increase in refugees and displaced people in just the last three months,” . . . Read More

Amnesty: UN must protect Central African civilians

September 11, 2017 Central African Republic Alindao, Anti-balaka, Basse-Kotto, Central African Republic, Gambo, Seleka, UN, UPC, Zemio

A wave of brutal attacks in the Central African Republic, including the systematic rape and murder of civilians, highlights the urgent need for stronger UN action to protect civilians, says Amnesty International in a new report, published on 8 September. Amnesty’s in-depth report encompasses attacks on civilians in the eastern prefecture . . . Read More

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