DOHA, Qatar (AP) Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel has ordered the U.S. military to transport troops from Burundi into the Central African Republic to help quell the latest upsurge in violence there.
Hagel approved the order after speaking with French Minister of Defense Jean-Yves Le Drian Monday night from Afghanistan where he was visiting troops. Le Drian asked the U.S. to help get African troops quickly into the country to prevent the violence there from spreading, said Pentagon spokesman Carl Woog.
There are more than 1,000 French troops in the Central African Republic, where more than 400 people were killed in two days of violence last week between Christians and Muslims. Christian armed fighters oppose the Muslim ex-rebels now in charge of the former French colony.
Woog said Hagel directed the U.S. Africa Command to begin transporting forces in coordination with France because the U.S. believes immediate action is needed to avert a humanitarian catastrophe. And he said the Pentagon will be evaluating what other U.S. resources might be available if additional requests for assistance come in.
Hagel's order came hours before President Barack Obama recorded an audio message urging calm in the Central African Republic.