Populations in the Central African Republic are at risk of atrocity crimes due to ongoing violence by armed groups and abuses by government and allied forces. 

BACKGROUND:

Civilians in the Central African Republic (CAR) continue be at imminent risk of atrocity crimes due to ongoing armed group activity, as well as security operations to confront them. An offensive launched in late 2020 by the Coalition of Patriots for Change (CPC), a loose alliance of some of CAR’s strongest rebel groups, collapsed a 2019 peace deal that formally ended more than five years of armed conflict. The Central African Armed Forces (FACA) – working closely with Russian security partners, including mercenary fighters from the Wagner Group (now Africa Corps) – responded to the CPC with counteroffensives, forcing these groups to withdraw from provincial towns for the first time in at least a decade.

Predatory armed groups perpetrate regular violent attacks, with populations in the northeast and south bearing the brunt. The groups are committing violations of International Humanitarian Law (IHL), including killing and abducting civilians, the forcible recruitment of children and attacks on civilian infrastructure, humanitarian workers and the UN peacekeeping mission (MINUSCA). In. CPC-aligned groups have increasingly utilized guerrilla tactics, including explosive ordnance and kidnappings, isolating civilians in rural communities.

The situation in southeastern Haut-Mbomou prefecture remains critical. The Azande Ani Kpi Gbe (AAKG), a predominantly ethnic Azandé armed group, emerged in 2023 to expel the predominantly Fulani UPC from their strongholds. The AAKG forcibly recruited Azandé youth and spread Azandé ethnonationalist propaganda. Fighting between the groups has resulted in forced displacement and grave human rights abuses against civilians, particularly along ethnic lines, by all sides.

In 2024 hundreds of Azandé fighters received training from Russian paramilitaries and were integrated into the FACA through a unit known as Wagner Ti Azande (WTA) that operated under paramilitaries. The integrated forces consolidated control of key communities. The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and MINUSCA have documented likely war crimes by WTA and AAKG, primarily targeting Muslim communities and Sudanese refugees. The situation in Haut-Mbomou escalated further in 2025 after the alliance between the AAKG/WTA with FACA began to fracture. The AAKG carried out ethnic violence and grave human rights abuses in Zemio, Dembia and Rafai, including killings, gang rapes, torture, kidnappings, attacks on humanitarian workers and MINUSCA and looting of aid convoys. The government signing a peace agreement with the UPC also marked a turning point. Reports of Russian personnel arresting Azandé leaders and committing other violations against civilians, as well as evidence of FACA and Russian paramilitaries recruiting former UPC fighters to help combat the AAKG, have further heightened tensions.

The UN has documented abuses and violations by FACA and mercenaries that may amount to war crimes, including summary executions, arbitrary killings, torture, rape and enforced disappearances. Ethnic and religious minorities have been disproportionately targeted – facing attacks, ill-treatment, illegal arrests and detentions – in operations by FACA troops and mercenaries. OHCHR has previously implicated proxy forces – who were recruited, trained and armed by FACA and mercenaries – in incidents targeting and punishing Muslim and Fulani communities that may amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity. The police have also arbitrarily arrested, illegally detained and tortured Fulani civilians.

Government institutions have cracked down on human rights defenders, independent media and the opposition in recent years, with many arrested, harassed by pro-government armed groups or subjected to investigations. These authoritarian actions increased throughout 2024, fueling persistent tensions ahead of the local and presidential elections held in December 2025.

The protracted crisis in CAR has its origins in the overthrow of President François Bozizé during March 2013 by the mainly Muslim Séléka rebel alliance. Abuses by the Séléka led to the formation of predominantly Christian anti-balaka militias and the collapse of state institutions. Anti-balaka and ex-Séléka forces committed likely war crimes and crimes against humanity between 2013-2015. To date, two former anti-balaka leaders have been convicted by the International Criminal Court and a trial is ongoing for a Séléka leader. The Special Criminal Court (SCC) in CAR has approximately 15 ongoing investigations and three trials for war crimes and/or crimes against humanity. The SCC, which relies solely on voluntary contributions, is at serious risk of closure in 2026 due to severe budget cuts.

RECENT DEVELOPMENTS:

Armed group activity and IHL violations continue, leading to killings, kidnappings, forced displacement and increased conflict-related sexual violence and grave violations against children, particularly in the northeast and southeast prefectures, near mining sites and transhumance corridors. The UN Panel of Experts has warned of escalating and increasingly coordinated attacks on Fulani community members across the country. Clashes in Zémio, Haut-Mbomou between the FACA, their allies and the AAKG caused civilian casualties and mass displacement, including into the Democratic Republic of the Congo and South Sudan. Since the start of 2026, MINUSCA’s Human Rights Division has carried out several missions in Haut-Mbomou, including to strengthen early warning mechanisms and promote dialogue and mediation.

Civilians are at risk by cross-border incursions from armed groups based in Sudan and South Sudan.  The conflict in Sudan continues to spill over into CAR, forcing thousands of refugees into northeastern prefectures, exacerbating inter-communal tensions and straining limited services.

CAR held presidential and local elections in December 2025, with President Faustin-Archange Touadéra winning a third term after securing an outright majority. The elections occurred in a tense atmosphere, with opposition candidates accusing the government of obstruction and electoral fraud, raising concerns for further repression. During the electoral period, the AAKG launched targeted attacks on security posts across Haut-Mbomou, disrupting voting in Bambouti and elsewhere and intimidating communities.

ANALYSIS:

The security situation remains precarious in certain areas amid recurrent attacks on civilians. Although the CPC has weakened and become internally divided over time, dissident factions continue to threaten civilians through attacks, kidnappings and extortion as they pursue their own agendas. The cross-border flow of foreign fighters, arms and natural resources contributes to a thriving conflict-economy. Africa Corps have committed human rights abuses and targeted civilians to maintain and increase their control of mining areas.

The prior integration of the AAKG with FACA exacerbated violence against civilians, intensified inter-communal tensions and triggered retaliatory violence. Animosity between FACA and AAKG heightens risks for further atrocities.

The government sought to bolster confidence in the elections by signing a series of peace accords with armed groups throughout 2025, resulting in relative stability in parts of the country. However, fighting continues between FACA and the AAKG and civil society activists and UN experts question the longevity of these gains without genuine and sustainable disarmament efforts. Many of the agreements also bypass accountability for past human rights abuses and potential war crimes.

The history of widespread impunity in CAR has fueled cycles of armed conflict and atrocities. While there are several mechanisms mandated to deal with international crimes perpetrated in CAR, accountability remains limited with few alleged perpetrators having been arrested, prosecuted or tried for war crimes and crimes against humanity since 2013. The lack of clarity regarding the legal status and command structures of militia members integrated into the FACA complicates accountability.

RISK ASSESSMENT:

• • • Escalating violence and hate speech on the basis of ethnicity and religion, increasing retaliatory attacks and the formation of self-defense groups and/or forced recruitment.
    • Training and alliances with abusive armed groups and integration of such groups into FACA.
    • Insufficient disarmament efforts, with current peace agreements risk remaining largely symbolic and entrenching impunity for past and ongoing abuses.
    • Deliberate acts of violence and exploitation against vulnerable populations.
    • Repressive measures to close civic space and suppress dissent.

NECESSARY ACTION:

All armed actors must adhere to their obligations under IHL and International Human Rights Law. CAR authorities must instruct FACA to cease collusion or cooperation with armed groups. Provincial and local authorities, in coordination with civil society, should implement community-based atrocity prevention and response strategies to address and mitigate inter-communal tensions.

All perpetrators of atrocities in CAR should be held legally accountable, regardless of their political status, rank, affiliation or nationality. All suspects subject to SCC arrest warrants should be taken into custody. The international community should urgently provide financial resources to the SCC to ensure the Court can carry out its mandate.

CAR authorities must guarantee the independence of institutions, respect freedom of peaceful assembly and association, strengthen and protect civic space and counter incitement to violence.