Deadly violence, including reports of cannibalism and widespread looting, erupted in the capital of the Central African Republic after the resignation of its ex-rebel president.
Michel Djotodia arrived in Benin's capital on Saturday, a day after stepping down as president under intense diplomatic pressure, but a flare-up of violence in Bangui dashed hopes his resignation would cool tensions in the strife-torn nation.
In the hours after his resignation, at least five people were killed in a night punctuated by gunfire, according to the latest toll reported by the Central African Red Cross.
Looting erupted throughout the city as crowds broke down the doors of shops. Many of them belonged to Muslims, reflecting the sectarian nature of the strife that has racked the country, AFP correspondents reported.
"Those who were looted when the (mainly Muslim) Seleka (rebels) arrived (in March last year) are now looting in turn," said the head of the local Red Cross, pastor Antoine Mbaobogo.
Some of the thieves allegedly committed acts of cannibalism, witnesses told AFP.
One resident of the capital, still in shock, related an incident on Tuesday when a Muslim man was attacked by a group who cut him up with a machete.
"One of the individuals took hold of an arm and went and bought some bread and starting chewing on the flesh, along with his bread," Jean-Sylvestre Tchya said.
"The scene made many people vomit, and some cried out in horror."
Another witness, Alain Gbabobou, said he saw a man pick up the head and wrap it up carefully, saying he would "feast on it" later.
Djotodia, the first Muslim leader in the majority-Christian nation, had come under fire for failing to rein in the rebels who brought him to power in March 2013, and whose abuses triggered retaliatory violence by Christian militias.
A special regional summit in Chad called to try to restore peace in the CAR raised hopes the resignation of Djotodia along with that of Prime Minister Nicolas Tiangaye would bring an end to the brutal tit-for-tat religious violence.
But for now there is little sign of a let-up in the sectarian strife.
"It's impossible to live with the Muslims. We don't want Arabs in Central Africa," a young man looting a mosque told AFP.
Ten months of violence have displaced a fifth of the country's population, and the sectarian flare-up has killed more than 1000 people in the past month alone, despite former colonial power France's military intervention and the presence of an African peacekeeping force.
The United Nations' special representative to the country, Babacar Gaye, appealed to the population "to maintain calm and show maturity following the resignations".
Meanwhile, the International Organisation for Migration on Saturday began an airlift of thousands of foreigners following appeals from neighbouring countries. The first flight evacuated some 800 Chadians.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has called on the African Union to speedily provide promised troops to help curb the "terrible crisis" in the impoverished country.
France has deployed 1600 troops in the country to support the African Union MISCA force, which is meant to have up to 6000 troops but has not yet reached 3500.
