US urges C.Africa to 'break the cycle of violence'

The people of the Central African Republic must "break the cycle of violence" and halt revenge attacks, the United States urged Wednesday, voicing concern about ongoing clashes between Muslims and Christians.

"This sectarian violence must end," said State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki in a statement.

"The people of CAR must seize the opportunity afforded by its newly appointed transitional leadership and a strong level of international support to end the present crisis and move toward a stable and peaceful society. "

Central African soldiers publicly lynched a suspected ex-rebel following a military ceremony on Wednesday, just moments after new interim president Catherine Samba Panza spoke of her pride at seeing the army once again contributing to national security.

The incident underscored the ongoing chaos in the country since the mainly Muslim Seleka rebel alliance seized power last March, launching a campaign of murder, rape and looting against the Christian majority.

The unrest unleashed a wave of tit-for-tat inter-religious violence that has displaced around a million people and left thousands dead.

Reconciliation will not happen "unless all groups look toward the future and break the cycle of violent retribution for past events," Psaki said.

Washington as well as other countries and international organizations "will support the efforts of the transition government to end the conflict and re-establish a functioning state," she added.

"We call on all in CAR to join this effort and work toward reconciliation rather than revenge."