The Central African government and the United Nations mission in the country (Minusca) announced Tuesday that they want to disarm the PK5, the Muslim-majority shopping district of Bangui where violent clashes have killed more than 30 people in the past few days.
« Anyone armed will be disarmed or neutralized, » warned Dili Aminou Alao, spokesman for Minusca, who told AFP that the government would be present through its Internal Security Forces (ISF) and that a commissioner would be installed.
The PK5, where many Muslim vendors had taken refuge in 2013 to flee clashes between Seleka rebels and anti-balaka groups, had become the capital’s commercial artery, regularly shaken since 2014 by violence by groups of self-defense that ransomed traders.
Clashes between these tired traders and armed groups on December 26 left more than 30 dead, according to the Red Cross, which operates a hospital on site, and Imam Awad Al Karim, of the PK5’s Ali Babolo mosque. , where the bodies had been deposited.
According to this figure of the district, the revolt of the traders had the desired effect. « The self-defense groups are compartmentalized at home, they have asked for the protection of the Minusca against the traders », he describes.
According to the spokesperson for Minusca, « the ball is in the court » of the vigilante groups. « We are waiting for their members to come with their weapons to drop them off, » he said.
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