Official: African peacekeeper killed in Central African Republic

BRAZZAVILLE, Republic of Congo – A military official says an African Union peacekeeper from the Republic of Congo was killed over the weekend in Central African Republic by a Christian militia trying to overthrow the country’s Muslim president.

The official, who was sent to repatriate the body to Congo on Monday, said the soldier was in the remote town of Bossangoa, which has been at the epicenter of the fighting.

He was killed by the anti-balaka militia, which hacked the peacekeeper “with unprecedented barbarity,” the official said on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to speak to the media.

The attack underscores how the international force sent to try to pacify the chaotic country is increasingly in peril. It comes after French forces also came under fire.

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