| Further developments on this story from two days ago. |
Unidentified armed assailants attacked the Notre Dame de Fatima church in the capital Bangui with grenades and guns during morning mass, initially killing at least 15 and critically wounding scores of others.
The number of dead is expected to rise further, said Antoine Mbao Bogo, president of the Central African Republican Red Thingy.
"We have counted 99 seriously maimed, some of whom are being treated. And some are dying because the there was nothing to be done, despite the work of the doctors," he said.
The attack adds to a list of recent deadly festivities in Central African Republic where state control is breaking down and inter-faith violence that has long blighted the country threatens to flare again.
Mainly Moslem Seleka
...a 'mainly' Moslem rebel force in the Central African Republic that overthrew the govt, imposed a regime of rapine and looting on the country's non-Moslem population, and was then tossed by France. They still exist, getting funding and weapons from somewhere or other, licking their wounds, complaining about the oppression of Moslems, and occasionally raping and looting someone...
rebels ousted President Francois Bozize in 2013, sparking retaliation killings by "anti-balaka" gangs, drawn largely from Christian communities.
Tuesday's church attack occurred on the edge of the mainly Moslem PK5 neighbourhood where 21 people were killed last month when UN peacekeepers and local security forces clashed with criminal gangs.