Central African Republic: Attack could re-ignite sectarian violence

According to a presidential spokesman, Ex-Seleka fighters killed 26 villagers in Ndomete, 350 km north of the capital Bangui, as reported by Reuters on 17 September 2016. This threatens to re-ignite the religious violence and political turmoil that has ravaged the country in the recent past. The rebels reportedly went door to door to kill their victims. The UN peacekeeping mission, MINUSCA, has since deployed troops in the area to prevent further violence. Yonas Dembele, persecution analyst at World Watch Research, finds this attack worrying: "After the recent election that was supposed to herald the stabilization of Central African Republic, this massacre is the largest and most notable indication of the resumption of the sectarian violence which ended up pitting Muslims against Christians and vice versa. The newly installed administration of President Faustin-Archange Touadĩra faces the very tough challenge of halting the (mainly Muslim) ex-Seleka violence and imposing law and order in the country. Unless the government and UN peacekeeping forces manage to stabilize the situation quickly, anti-Balaka units might launch revenge attacks."