Muslim Youths Mutilated in CAR

Local Editor

At least three Muslim youths were killed and mutilated by a Christian militia in Central African Republic while on their way play a reconciliation soccer game on Sunday, organizers and a spokesman for the country's Muslim community said.

"Their organs and hearts have been removed," Muslim community spokesman Ousmane Abakar said.
He said the bodies of the boys, from Bangui's mostly Muslim PK5 neighborhood, had been taken to a mosque in the capital by the community after the attack. There ages were not known.

Youths in PK5 barricaded the main road in protest, residents said.

Sebastien Wenezoui, a coordinator of the anti-balaka, condemned the attacks and said 10 youths in total had been abducted in the incident by a faction of the group from the Boy-Rabe neighborhood.

"We do not know where the others are," Wenezoui said. "We strongly condemn these acts. While we are currently working towards peace, others continue to kill."
Lazare Djader, president of Collectif Urgence 236, the association working to reconcile the communities, said months of work to bring the youths together had been dealt a heavy blow.

"Because of these deaths, I have zero morale. Several months of efforts are lost. I'm trying to calm everyone down, but they are all very angry right now," Djader said, adding that a non-Muslim youth had also been found killed.

More than 2,000 people have been killed in the violence in Central African Republic and a million of the country's 4.5 million people have been forced from their homes despite the presence of several thousand African peacekeepers and European Union and French troops.     

The United Nations has warned that the conflict could spiral into a genocide.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team