About 500 prisoners escape from jail as violence in capital worsens

The worst violence to hit Central African Republic's capital in a year further deteriorated on Monday as more than 500 inmates escaped from a prison and militia fighters looted the offices of international aid organizations, officials said. The death toll from several days of clashes reached 42 including a teenage boy who was decapitated.

The unrest erupted as transitional President Catherine Samba-Panza was in New York at the UN General Assembly, sparked by the death of a Muslim man whose body was left near a mosque. Muslim militants then attacked a Christian neighborhood with weekend clashes leaving several dozen people dead.

The United States swiftly condemned the unrest, and pledged its support for Samba-Panza's government, which was supposed to organize elections by year-end. Few see the Oct 18 dates as possible, and the near-anarchic conditions in Bangui on Monday further cast doubt on their feasibility. Pope Francis is also due to visit in November as part of his Africa trip.