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| CAR Seleka rebels kill many in Bangui church attack | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| At least 11 people have been killed in an attack on a church in the Central African Republic. | At least 11 people have been killed in an attack on a church in the Central African Republic. |
| Eyewitnesses said members of the Seleka militia group threw grenades before shooting indiscriminately at the Church of Fatima in the capital Bangui. | Eyewitnesses said members of the Seleka militia group threw grenades before shooting indiscriminately at the Church of Fatima in the capital Bangui. |
| The mostly Muslim Seleka rebels have been involved in heavy fighting with mainly Christian fighters in the anti-balaka militia since March 2013. | The mostly Muslim Seleka rebels have been involved in heavy fighting with mainly Christian fighters in the anti-balaka militia since March 2013. |
| The conflict has displaced about 25% of CAR's 4.6 million population. | The conflict has displaced about 25% of CAR's 4.6 million population. |
| The attack on the church followed hours of fighting in the PK5 neighborhood of Bangui. | |
| Eyewitnesses said those inside the Catholic church were seeking shelter from the clashes. | |
| The priest of the church, Jonas Bekas, told Reuters that the death toll would probably rise because there were so many wounded. | |
| "It would have been much worse if the anti-balaka militia had not come to defend us" he said. | |
| Reprisals fear | |
| It is the worst attack on Christians in the country since the Seleka rebels were ousted from power in January 2014. | |
| The Seleka prime minister Michel Djotodia was forced to resign as president after failing to stop anti-Christian attacks. | |
| Since then, there have been widespread reprisals against Muslim civilians, who were almost completely driven out of Bangui in what the UN said amounted to ethnic cleansing. | |
| Lat week the Seleka group announced that it had put in place a new chain of command to "rein in" its fighters. | Lat week the Seleka group announced that it had put in place a new chain of command to "rein in" its fighters. |
| The group still controls large parts of the country's north. | |
| The African Union, France and the European Union have about 7,000 troops battling to end the conflict. | The African Union, France and the European Union have about 7,000 troops battling to end the conflict. |