Bangui mosque becomes safe haven for Muslims

A central mosque in Kilometer 5, a predominantly Muslim district of Bangui, capital of the Central African Republic (CAR), has become a safe haven for several hundreds of Muslims fleeing attacks by Christian mobs and anti-balaka militiamen .

Muslims have been targeted with increasing frequency since Samba-Panza came to office in January. Two Muslims were lynched by a mob of angry Christians in Bangui before the Rwandan contingent of African peacekeeping force MISCA intervened to save others from similar fates .

Outside the mosque, trucks loaded with household goods wait to set out for Chad and Cameroon – both favored destinations for CAR's fleeing Muslims .

Since December 2013, the UNHCR alone has registered over 50,000 CAR citizens who had been forced to flee the country .