Central African Republic

In the Central African Republic, the Seleka, an alliance of five armed militia groups, began an uprising to oust President François Bozizé on Dec. 10. By Jan. 2, 2013, they had fought their way to within 45 miles of the capital, Bangui.

The rebels agreed to peace talks but demanded that the president’s removal be a primary condition. The president refused. At press time, the capital was under a nightly curfew. Unless peace talks scheduled for Jan. 17 are successful, armed conflict will continue. The US Embassy in Bangui suspended its operations on Dec. 28.