8. The Central African Republic
Number of refugees: 471,100
The Central African Republic ranks 8th in our list of the countries that produce the most refugees in the world. It’s appalling and quite saddening that an African country suffering from a violent civil war does not grab the attention of anyone anymore, because the truth is, it does not sound like anything unusual. Various African countries are in the midst of turmoil, and the Central African Republic is certainly not an exception. Although it has been unstable since it gained independence from France in 1960, the real trouble started in December 2012 when conflicts between the Muslim rebel group called Seleka and the government of the nation heated up. Seleka managed to overthrow the government and declare its leadership over the country, but not soon after, a militia called Anti-balaka, comprising mostly of Christians, surfaced. The president of the country representing the rebels resigned, but the fighting continued, and as a result, the Muslims were persecuted by the hands of the Christians. Like many other conflicts, this has now just bubbled down to a fight between Muslims and Christians, with civilians suffering and being forced to flee their own country.
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