C. Africa president meets pope, sticks by troubled peace deal

On Monday, one of the main militia groups, the Union for Peace in the Central African Republic (UPC), led by Ali Darassa, said the peace deal was "threatened if the government does not show a clear change of attitude".Another group, the Democratic Front of the Central African People (FPDC) announced it was walking away in protest.Within hours three other groups announced they also rejected the peace deal or were pulling out of the new government.he current peace process is the eighth attempt to bring peace to the CAR, one of the world's poorest and most unstable countries, since mainly Muslim rebels ousted president Francois Bozize, a Christian, in 2013."It's a huge challenge," admitted Touadera.

"It's one thing to have an agreement, but it must be applied... and we need help from our friends," he added.

The Vatican, in a statement, said Pope Francis and diplomats had encouraged engagement to promote peaceful co-existence and "national reconciliation".