UN Worker Abducted in Central African Republic

A member of the UN Mission for the Stabilization of the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) was kidnapped by unidentified armed men in Bangui, a day after similar abduction of a French charity worker and a priest.

MOSCOW, January 20 (Sputnik) — Gunmen abducted a member of the UN peacekeeping mission MINUSCA in the city of Bangui, capital of Central African Republic, Reuters reported on Tuesday.

"Unidentified armed men kidnapped on Tuesday a woman who works for MINUSCA after having stopped the vehicle in which she was travelling”, the mission representative said in statement, cited by Reuters.

The incident followed a similar attack on Monday, when a woman working for a French charity organization and a cleric were kidnapped from a truck, travelling through the country’s capital, as reported by AFP.

Central African Republic has been hit by inter-religious violence since March 2013 coup, when a group of Muslim Seleka militias overthrew the government and seized the power.

Oppositional groups, the so called Anti-balaka militias, formed to fight the Seleka members, but started cruel reprisal attacks on the Muslim community.

The UN mission in the country was established by the UN Security Council in April 2014 and took over peacekeeping duties on September 15. According to the official website of the organization, MINUSCA has a mandate to protect civilians — especially women and children — from physical violence, support political transition process, ensure humanitarian assistance and protect human rights.