WASHINGTON, Dec. 18 (UPI) -- Those suspected of committing human rights abuses in the Central African Republic will be held accountable, a U.S. State Department official said.
The rebel Seleka coalition, a predominately Muslim group, toppled the CAR government in March. The post-coup conflict has escalated as Christian militias take up arms against their Muslim rivals.
Linda Thomas-Greenfield, assistant secretary of state for African affairs, told a Senate foreign affairs committee the U.S. government was firm in its condemnation of Seleka's "campaign of rape, pillage and killings."
"We have also warned that individuals responsible for fueling and engaging in violence and human rights violations will be held accountable," she testified Tuesday.
Kristalina Georgieva, the crisis response commissioner for the European Union, said Monday the country is facing its worst crisis since independence in 1960.
The United Nations last weekend said more than 450 people were killed during recent fighting in Bangui, the capital of the former French colony.
The U.N. Security Council authorized a French military mission to support an African Union peacekeeping effort in CAR. The United States and some of its European allies are assisting in the French effort.
Thomas-Greenfield said the White House has reached out to CAR radio broadcasters urging them to issue messages calling for reconciliation.
