The fighters of the Unity for Peace in Central Africa (UPC) rebel group mounted simultaneous attacks on army "checkpoints and camps" in the eastern city of Alindao, MUNISCA spokesman Abdoulaziz Fall told AFP, adding that the "clashes left seven dead".

The peacekeepers forced back the rebels, who fell back three kilometres (two miles) from the two, Fall added.

"Currently the Central African armed forces are in place in the city with us," he said. Around 60 Nepalese peacekeepers had been sent to the city as reinforcements, he added.

The UPC is one of the largest and best equipped rebel groups operating in the country, its members controlling many operating mines. It mainly operates in the east of the country.