CAR interim president likely to resign Thursday

The Central African Republic's interim President Michel Djotodia is due to step down at a summit of regional leaders on Thursday amid frustration at his failure to quell religious violence in his nation, diplomatic and political sources told Reuters.

"It's finished for him now," said a source close to Djotodia, who said he was due to step aside at the summit in the Chadian capital, N'Djamena.

Al Jazeera's Barnaby Philips, reporting from the CAR's capital, Bangui, said many believe Djotodia's time in office "has been nothing short of disastrous."

French and African troops deployed in the country have struggled to stop tit-for-tat violence between Muslim Seleka rebels, who seized power in March, and Christian militias. More than 1,000 people died in clashes in December.

Djotodia, the Seleka leader, was installed as interim president under a deal with regional African states, but he has been powerless to halt the bloodshed, which has displaced some 1 million people and stirred fears of a repeat of Rwanda's 1994 genocide.

A senior French diplomatic source and political sources in Bangui said Central African leaders led by Chad's Idriss Deby had run out of patience with Djotodia.

"The French want him out," Philips said.

In an interview with Le Parisien newspaper earlier Wednesday, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said, "A political stabilization of the country is imperative." 

He declined to answer when asked if Djotodia could stay as president, saying: "It is envisaged that the countries of the region will meet on Thursday to take decisions."

The meeting will discuss the various options for continuing the transition. The presidents of the Republic of Congo and Gabon, who are mediating in the crisis, would then convene a meeting to discuss the transition in Bangui on Jan.11, diplomatic sources said.

Al Jazeera and Reuters