At least thirty people were murdered at a Catholic Church compound in the capital of Central Republic on Wednesday.
Muslim fighters stormed the complex and massacred the Christians with guns and grenades.
The AP reported:
Muslim rebels stormed a Catholic church compound in the capital of Central African Republic on Wednesday, killing as many as 30 people in a hail of gunfire and grenades, witnesses said.
The attack on the compound at the church, where thousands of civilians had sought refuge from the violence ravaging Bangui’s streets, is the largest blamed on Muslim fighters since their Seleka coalition was ousted from power nearly five months ago.
Wednesday’s attack marked a rare attack on a house of worship, as Catholic churches have served as sanctuaries for both Christian and Muslim civilians since the country erupted into sectarian bloodshed in December.
Fears escalated late Wednesday that the new bloodshed would spark reprisal attacks on the city’s few remaining Muslims, most of whom fled the city in a mass exodus earlier this year that the U.N. has described as ethnic cleansing. In the hours that followed, Christian militia fighters began putting up road blockades around Bangui.
