DAKAR Armed groups have agreed to allow for the evacuation of some civilians from a mosque in Central African Republic’s southeastern town of Bangassou after two days of fighting, a senior U.N. official said on Monday.
Around 1000 people in the town had sought refuge from attacks inside and then found themselves trapped there by the militias, said U.N. Humanitarian Coordinator in Central African Republic Najat Rochdi. As of late morning, women and children as well as the injured and dead had left but an unknown number of men were still held hostage inside, she added.
A total of 26 bodies have so far been identified in the town and are being recovered by aid workers, said Rochdi.
(Reporting by Emma Farge; Editing by Toby Chopra)
