The death toll from a two-day rampage by mostly Muslim ex-rebels in the Central African Republic (CAR) capital Bangui two weeks ago was much higher than first thought, with close to 1,000 people killed, Amnesty International said .

Violence erupted in the city on December 5 when Christian militias known as "anti-balaka" went door-to-door in some districts in the capital "and killed approximately 60 Muslim men", Amnesty said. Muslim groups then retaliated "on a larger scale against Christians in the wake of the attack, killing nearly 1,000 men over a two-day period and systematically looting civilian homes. A small number of women and children were also killed". The UN earlier estimated 450 people had been killed in Bangui and 150 elsewhere in the country. CAR, a mostly Christian country, spiralled into chaos after Michel Djotodia's mainly Muslim Seleka rebel group overthrew President François Bozizé in March. Seleka was disbanded after the coup, but many rebels went rogue, terrorising civilians with massacres, rapes and lootings.