Five, İncluding Un Peacekeeper, Killed İn Bangui Clashes

At least five people, including one UN peacekeeper, were killed in the Central African Republic (CAR) on Sunday during clashes between peacekeeping forces and armed assailants in capital Bangui, according to a MINUSCA spokesman.



Amadun Ture, a spokesman for the UN's Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA), said Monday that one peacekeeper had been killed – along with four gunmen – during clashes that took place in Bangui's predominantly-Muslim PK5 district.



In the wake of the clashes, PK5 district spokesman Osman Abakan told Anadolu Agency that MINUSCA personnel had surrounded the area on Sunday in hopes of seizing Harun Gaye, a leading member of the Muslim Seleka rebel group.



CAR descended into anarchy in 2013 when Seleka rebels ousted President Francois Bozize, a Christian who had come to power in a 2003 coup. The rebels then installed Michel Djotodia, a Muslim, as interim president.



Djotodia later stepped down to be replaced by Catherine Samba-Panza – a Christian – amid a wave of sectarian violence.



Since then, the country has been plagued by tit-for-tat violence between Christian anti-Balaka militiamen and Seleka fighters.



In May of this year, following two weeks of intense negotiations, the Seleka group and the anti-Balaka militia both agreed to lay down their arms.



In June, Samba-Panza approved legislation establishing a special court tasked with looking into alleged crimes committed during the country's sectarian conflict. 



Due to the ongoing crisis, presidential elections in CAR – originally slated for 2014 – have been postponed three times. They are currently scheduled to be held in October. - Orta Afrika Cumhuriyeti