France’s Defence Minister Jean-Yves le Drian says the conflict-torn Central African Republic must not be allowed to split.<br /><br />He was speaking on his latest visit to the former French colony.<br /><br />Rising religious violence there has prompted UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to warn that de facto ‘partition’ between Muslims and Christians is a real risk.<br /><br />Christian militias formed after abuses by mainly Muslim Seleka rebels, who ruled the country for nine months, are waving a revenge cycle of bloodshed.<br /><br />Ban wants Paris to add to the 1,600 strong force it has already sent to assist African Union peace keepers. The European Union has agreed to send around 500 troops.<br /><br />The UN chief is concerned that the violence could spiral into a genocide and says the international response to the crisis “does not yet match the gravity of the situation”.<br /><br />“The international response must be robust with a credible deployment of force… It must be swift if we are to prevent the worst-case scenario,” said Ban, who is due to report to the United Nations Security Council in March on options for transforming the current African Union peacekeeping force into a UN operation.<br /><br />At least 2,000 people have been killed and, despite the arrival of new interim President Catherine Samba-Panza, danger and hunger are rife.
