REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, BANGUI -- Ten people were killed and 38 wounded on Saturday in an outbreak of violence sparked by the death of a motorcycle taxi driver in the capital of the Central African Republic, witnesses said.

The unrest erupted after the driver, a Muslim, was killed for unknown reasons, residents said, sparking clashes in a majority Muslim neighbourhood of Bangui known as PK-5. Most of the victims suffered gunshot wounds, according to a hospital source.

In response to the shooting, UN peacekeepers and French soldiers took up positions in the district, which was the epicentre of unprecedented killings between Christians and Muslims in Bangui between 2013-2014.

CAR descended into bloodshed after a 2013 coup ousted longtime leader Francois Bozize, and the impoverished country remains prey to violence between Muslim Seleka rebels and Christian "anti-balaka" (anti-machete) militias.