According to a BBC report; 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.
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 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.
Rev Freddy Mboula told
the Associated Press (AP) that he was in the church when shooting was heard
outside.
"There were
screams and after 30 minutes of gunfire there were bodies everywhere" he
said.
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.
