CENTRAL African Republic forces (CAR) have killed around 44 rebels who were trying to blockade the capital Bangui, the government reported on Monday evening.

They are protesting against the re-election of President Faustin-Archange Touadera, who was declared the winner of the controversial December 27 poll last week.

Opposition groups are angry at the exclusion of former president Francois Bozize from the poll. 

He ruled from 2003 until he was ousted by a rebel alliance known as Seleka, sparking a conflict between mainly Muslim and Christian armed groups.

A peace accord was signed in Sudan in 2019 which was thought to have brought an end to years of conflict in CAR.

But armed groups have united under the new umbrella Coalition des Patriotes pour le Changement (CPC) and taken control of two-thirds of the country.

They are moving in on Bangui and have blockaded major highways nationwide, causing food shortages because about 1,600 lorries carrying humanitarian aid and medical supplies are unable to enter the country.

The government implemented a 15-day state of emergency last week and United Nations troops repelled a rebel offensive that aimed to conquer the capital.

The UN warned that CAR is at “grave risk,” despite troops from Russia, France and Rwanda joining the peacekeeping forces.

Crisis Group analyst Hans De Marie Heungoup described the blockade as “a deliberate tactic to strangle the capital economically, to force the government to the negotiating table.”

More than 100,000 people have been displaced since the violence began last month, including 84,000 who have fled to neighbouring countries, according to the UN. 

About 10,000 refugees arrived in the Democratic Republic of the Congo on January 13 alone.

Government forces blame Mr Bozize for the increased violence, an accusation that he flatly rejects.

But Mr Touadera said on Monday: “The perpetrators … of these unforgettable crimes against the people of CAR will be found, arrested and brought before the competent courts.”