Three UN peacekeepers have been killed in the Central African Republic (CAR) as tensions flare between government and rebel forces.
The UN said unidentified combatants carried out two attacks, leaving two other peacekeepers injured.
The group were stationed in CAR to quell violence ahead of presidential and parliamentary elections on Sunday.
President Faustin Archange Touadéra has accused his predecessor François Bozizé of fomenting a coup with rebel groups.
Mr Bozizé, who is barred from running in the election and is under UN sanctions, has denied the allegation.
The government has also denied allegations of election rigging by the Coalition of Patriots for Change (CPC) – an alliance of the country’s most powerful rebel groups.
In a statement on Friday, the UN said the three deceased peacekeepers were from Burundi, and their deaths may constitute a war crime.
The assaults against them took place in Dekoa, central CAR, and in the southern area of Bakouma.
The UN said 55,000 people had fled their homes in CAR as violence escalates, and there has been an increase in attacks on humanitarian groups operating in the country.
