citizens to return to their homes.
Bocoum, the United Nations’ independent expert on the former French colony, said: “Disarming armed groups must be an absolute priority” ahead of presidential and general elections due by the end of the year.
She called on the government to “present a realistic and concrete plan” for disarmament and for reforming the security services.
But Thierry Vircoulon of the International Crisis Group said elections, which have already been pushed back several times, were unlikely this year.
”With international forces unable to retake control of the capital, it is difficult to imagine,” the ICG’s Central Africa project director told AFP in the Gabonese capital Libreville.
Failure to disarm and reinsert former combatants into society “will block the elections,” he warned, adding: “The current flare-up is the result of an accumulation of errors by the international community.”
The fresh unrest was sparked by the murder of a motorcycle-taxi driver in the PK-5 neighbourhood, angering Muslims who carried out reprisals against Christians in nearby districts using grenades and guns.
In response, members of the feared “anti-balaka” (anti-machete) Christian militia, which sprang up in 2013 to fight the Seleka rebels, began gathering in Bangui on Monday.
Some 20,000 terrified residents fled to camps by the airport, where French and UN peacekeepers from the 10,000-strong MINUSCA force are based. The violence also prompted protesters calling for Samba Panza to resign to erect the barricades across Bangui.
MINUSCA denied reports that its troops on Monday killed three people others after opening fire on several hundred demonstrators heading towards the presidency to demand Samba Panza’s resignation.
UN spokesman Rupert Colville said in Geneva that some 500 prisoners had escaped from Bangui’s main prison on Monday night, adding to the climate of insecurity.
The UN humanitarian coordinator in the country, Aurelien Agbenonci, strongly condemned attacks against aid organisations, adding: “All perpetrators of crimes against humanitarians will be held accountable.”
One in 10 Central Africans — 460,000 people—have sought refuge outside the country, mainly in Cameroon, Chad, DR Congo and Congo, since 2013.