C. Africa PM Pleads for 'Immediate' French Intervention

Central African Prime Minister Nicolas Tiangaye pleaded Thursday for France to intervene in his violence-ridden nation as soon as the U.N. issues a green light.

The U.N. Security Council was due to vote later Thursday on a resolution authorizing thousands of African and French troops to end anarchy in the Central African Republic, where mass killings have triggered fears of genocide.

"Given the urgency, my desire is that the intervention happens as soon as possible, immediately after the resolution", Tiangaye -- who is in Paris for a major Africa summit that kicks off Friday -- told AFP in an interview.

France already has 600 troops in its former colony and on Thursday 250 of them were deployed to the center of the capital Bangui following deadly gun violence overnight.

A further 600 French troops are expected to come in over the weekend to back up a 2,500-strong African MISCA force already on the ground.

The CAR has descended into chaos after the mostly Muslim Seleka rebels ousted the president in a coup in March, with Muslim and Christian groups fighting each other and tens of thousands of terrified people taking refuge in churches and mosques, fearing sectarian attacks.

Reports have described a litany of horrors, with security forces and militia gangs razing villages, carrying out public execution-style killings and perpetrating widespread rapes.

In the latest bout of violence, gunfire erupted in Bangui overnight, killing several people, according to aid workers on the scene.

The U.N. resolution, which envoys say is certain to be passed unanimously, also orders an arms embargo against the huge, impoverished nation.

Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said France would deploy the new troops after Thursday's vote, as soon as President Francois Hollande gave the order.

He added the intervention was likely to kick off "in the coming days."

Tiangaye said international forces would likely be able to quickly secure Bangui but emphasized that troops had to go to other parts of the country where massacres are being committed without any witnesses.

The draft resolution highlights the "total breakdown in law and order" in the state which, it adds, risks "degenerating into a countrywide religious and ethnic divide, with the potential to spiral into an uncontrollable situation."

The council will give the French-backed African force a 12-month mandate and the right to use "all necessary measures" to restore order. The African troop contingent is scheduled to rise to 3,600.

United Nations leader Ban Ki-moon has warned that up to 9,000 troops could be needed if the crisis blows up and a full U.N. force has to take over.

Tiangaye said the number of troops due to be authorized by the United Nations would be "insufficient given our needs for security."

"Everything must be done for the country to return to calm, humanitarian aid is needed to help distressed people and we need economic and financial backing to support the government in order to manage the transition period," he added.

Violence has spread through the country of 4.6 million since president Francois Bozize's overthrown.

A top rebel chief, Michel Djotodia, took over as president following the coup, becoming the first Muslim leader of the majority Christian country that has for decades been prone to coups, rebellions and mutinies.

Djotodia formally disbanded the Seleka but ex-rebels continued to wreak havoc. Locals responded by forming vigilante groups and the government quickly lost control of the landlocked country.

Senior U.N., U.S. and French officials have warned that if left unchecked the unrest risked degenerating into genocide in a country where the Christian and Muslim communities have generally co-habited peacefully through the nation's various upheavals.

The massacre of 12 Muslim women, children and men this week by suspected Christian vigilantes highlights the need for "urgent" action, French U.N. envoy Gerard Araud said.

The Security Council will give MISCA a mandate for the "stabilization of the country and the restoration of state authority over the whole territory of the country."

But it also calls on Ban to recommend within three months whether a full U.N. peacekeeping mission should step in.

France has led calls for a U.N. force but the United States and other Security Council members are more cautious.