Interim president Catherine Samba-Panza urged fighters to put down their arms as she took the oath of office, even as looters pillaged Muslim neighbourhoods and sectarian tensions escalated in the Central African Republic.
Samba-Panza, the nation's first female leader, was sworn in at a ceremony on Thursday days after being chosen by a national transitional council. The rebel leader behind the March 2013 coup stepped aside nearly two weeks ago under mounting international criticism of his inability to control his fighters and stem the violence.
In her inaugural address, Samba-Panza urged both the Muslim fighters behind the coup and Christian armed opposition to support peace.
"I strongly call on the fighters to show patriotism in putting down their weapons," she said. "The ongoing disorder in the country will no longer be tolerated."
The Central African Republic has been wracked by sectarian violence for months, with more than 1,000 people killed in Bangui over the course of several days in December alone. Nearly one million people have fled their homes, with 100,000 of them living in and around the Bangui airport being guarded by French soldiers.
UN officials have warned that the crisis has a high risk of escalating into genocide, driven by fighting between Christians and Muslims.
Hundreds of Christians went on a rampage on Wednesday, looting and setting fire to Muslim-owned homes and businesses and threatening to go on a killing spree.
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