(Al Jazeera) – Armed groups in the Central African Republic (CAR) freed more than 350 child soldiers Thursday in the largest such release since the country became engulfed in sectarian violence in late 2013, the United Nations children’s agency said. Three separate ceremonies took place near the town of Bambari, as children left the ranks of both Christian and Muslim rebel groups that once united to briefly rule the country. An estimated 6,000 to 10,000 children are thought to be working as soldiers, sex slaves or hold menial jobs such as cooks and messengers for rival armed groups in the historically unstable former French colony.
