Bangui, Central African Republic.

A relative of 20-year-old Sept-Abel Sangomalet mourns his death. Members of an armed Muslim group stabbed Sangomalet while he was asleep. His body was found outside his family home. 

In March, an alliance of mainly Muslim rebel groups known as Séléka seized power in the Central African Republic (CAR). The Séléka were then disbanded, but renegade groups continued to target civilians of the country’s Christian majority. Vigilante Christian militia, known as Anti-balaka, sprung up to defend their communities. Hundreds were killed, and some 400,000 people displaced, as violence in the CAR escalated. France sent 1,600 troops to the country to protect civilians and disarm the various militias, while the United Nations warned of deepening chaos and a spiral into genocide.