The African Union suspended the Central African Republic on Monday after rebels seized power in a rapid weekend assault on the capital, sending President Francois Bozize fleeing and triggering international appeals for calm. 
 
 Rebel leader Michel Djotodia planned to declare himself president Monday after his Seleka coalition took control of Bangui in the wake of the collapse of a two-month-old peace deal with Bozize’s regime. 
 
 But the African Union took swift action on Monday amid international concern about the deteriorating security situation in the deeply unstable former French colony. 
 
 “The council has decided to suspend with immediate effect Central African Republic from all African Union activities and to impose sanctions, travel restrictions and an asset freeze on Seleka’s leaders,” said AU peace and Security chief Ramtane Lamamra. 
 
 South Africa said 13 of its soldiers were killed and 27 wounded in the weekend fighting in Bangui and condemned the rebel offensive. 
 
 “As a member of the African Union, South Africa rejects any efforts to seize power by force,” President Jacob Zuma told reporters, adding however that there were no immediate plans to withdraw troops helping the weak national army. 
 
 Djotodia, a former civil servant turned rebel leader, said Sunday he would declare himself president but told Radio France Internationale the rebels would respect the terms of a January peace deal and would hold free and fair elections within three years. 
 
 Opposition figure Nicolas Tiangaye, appointed prime minister of a national unity government formed as part of the accord that ended a previous Seleka offensive launched late last year, would remain in the post, he said. 
 
 Bozize, who himself seized power in a coup in 2003, is said to have fled the Central African Republic but his whereabouts remain a mystery. 
 
 One well-placed source told AFP that he had left the country in a helicopter, but did not disclose his destination. French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius confirmed only that he had fled Bangui. 
 
 International appeals 
 
 About 20 members of Bozize’s family were taken to the neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo, government spokesman Lambert Mende told AFP, but said the ousted leader was not on its soil. 
 
 Djotodia said he may keep some ministers from Bozize’s clan in his government, pledging: “We are not here to carry out a witch-hunt.” 
 
 Bangui residents initially welcomed the rebels, waving palm leaves in celebration but the optimistic atmosphere quickly soured into anxiety as gangs of armed looters roamed the riverside city, pillaging shops and offices including the premises of the UN children’s agency UNICEF. 
 
 And the international community has expressed concern over the situation in the country, which remains one of the poorest nations on earth although it has largely untapped mineral wealth including uranium, gold and diamonds. 
 
 The US State Department said Sunday it was “very concerned by the worsening humanitarian situation in CAR and credible, widespread reports of human rights abuses by both national security forces and Seleka fighters”. 
 
 It also called for rebels to restore electricity and water to the capital which had been interrupted over the weekend. 
 
 UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon also condemned the seizure of power by Seleka — a loose alliance of three rebel movements — calling for “the swift restoration of constitutional order”. 
 
 French President Francois Hollande called on all parties to form a government in accordance with the January peace deal hammered out in the Gabonese capital Libreville, and asked “the armed groups to respect the population”, thousands of whom have already fled Bangui. 
 
 Rebel fighters resumed hostilities last week after they accused Bozize of reneging on the terms of the January deal which aimed to put an end to a previous offensive launched by Seleka in December. 
 
 The accord brought several prominent figures from Seleka into the government but it collapsed after the rebels said their demands, which included the release of people they described as political prisoners, had not been met. 
 
 Seleka launched its first offensive on December 10, accusing Bozize of having failed to honour an earlier peace agreement. They seized a string of towns on their way south but stopped short of Bangui. ||||| (CNN) -- In just over a day, rebels seized the Central African Republic's capital, forced the president out of the country and declared the nation had "opened a new page in its history." 
 
 But no one knows what the next page will say. 
 
 Michel Djotodia, the leader of the rebel alliance, the Seleka, declared himself the new president, and the rebel group says their takeover opens a path for peace and democracy. 
 
 Yet questions abound over the future of impoverished, landlocked country -- and what this uprising means for its 5.1 million residents. 
 
 Where is the Central African Republic? 
 
 The Central African Republic is a landlocked nation in the center of the continent, slightly smaller than Texas. It is bordered by Cameroon, Chad, Sudan, South Sudan, the Republic of Congo and the Democratic Republic of Congo. 
 
 A former French colony, it gained independence in August 1960. 
 
 Its 5.1 million residents include various ethnic groups who speak several languages. Even though French is the official language, Sango is the primary one. 
 
 What has been its form of government? 
 
 For the first 30 years, the country was ruled mostly by military governments. Civilian rule was established in 1993 but lasted only 10 years, according to the CIA World Factbook. 
 
 In March 2003, then-president Ange-Felix Patasse was deposed in a coup led by Gen. Francois Bozize. 
 
 Bozize is now in Cameroon, from which he is seeking to move to another country, the Cameroon government said in a communique dated Monday. The statement said that despite his presence, the country shall adhere to a policy of non-intervention. 
 
 How long was Bozize in power? 
 
 Two years after he took over in a coup, Bozize called elections in 2005 -- which he won. 
 
 In 2011, he was re-elected, but activists said the polling was marred by fraud. 
 
 When did the rebellion start? 
 
 From the beginning, Bozize did not have full control of the nation. Rebel groups operated, particularly in rural areas. 
 
 In December 2012, several of the rebel groups banded together, calling themselves the Seleka, or "coalition" in the Sango language. They accused Bozize of reneging on a peace deal and demanded that he step down. 
 
 Slowly, the rebels began taking over parts of the country. 
 
 Didn't the two sides strike a new peace deal? 
 
 Yes, Bozize and the Seleka brokered a peace deal in January, agreeing to form a unity government led by Bozize. 
 
 But that deal also fell apart. 
 
 What do the rebels want? 
 
 Some say the Seleka want a greater opposition presence in the country's government after Bozize's presidential election wins were met with fraud allegations. 
 
 But others say greed is a factor. 
 
 Only 3.1% of the land is arable, but the country has an array of natural resources, including diamonds, gold and timber. 
 
 "Government officials from Bangui have accused Seleka of harboring 'foreign provocateurs' greedy for the country's vast mineral wealth, and there are suspicions that nationals from Chad, Nigeria, and Sudan also make up Seleka's ranks," African studies doctoral candidate Jason Warner wrote in a piece for CNN. 
 
 How did the rebels take over the capital? 
 
 For weeks, the Seleka rebel coalition pushed its way from its base in the north toward the capital city of Bangui, seizing towns along the way. 
 
 Their efforts took a pivotal turn on March 24, when they infiltrated the capital. 
 
 Witnesses reported hours of fierce gunfire in the city, and a government official said seven civilians were killed. 
 
 Before he ended up in Cameroon, Bozize had crossed into the Democratic Republic of Congo by the end of the day, said Jules Gautier Ngbapo, a government spokesman. 
 
 And the rebels issued a bold message: 
 
 "The Central African Republic has just opened a new page in its history," said a written statement from Justin Kombo Moustapha, secretary general of the Seleka rebels. 
 
 The statement described Bozize as the country's former president and urged residents to remain calm and prepare themselves to welcome rebel forces. 
 
 Why were South African soldiers in the country? 
 
 South Africa sent 200 troops to the country in January to work with the military there to quash the rebellion. 
 
 During the rebel advance, 13 South African soldiers were killed and 27 wounded, the South African president's office said. One soldier was unaccounted for. 
 
 What is likely to happen next? 
 
 That's what world leaders are scrambling to figure out. 
 
 U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemned the "unconstitutional seizure of power," echoing the African Union's dismay over the rebels' offensive. 
 
 Ban's office said the United Nations will continue working with the African Union and the Economic Community of Central African States to find a solution. 
 
 Rebel leader Djotodia declared himself the new president, and the rebel alliance said democratic elections will take place after three years. 
 
 "A new page is opening for peace and democracy in the CAR," Francois Nelson N'Djadder, a rebel spokesman, wrote. 
 
 "Bozize being gone, the Central Africans must gather around the table to talk and find a common path which will ... lead to the organization of democratic elections." 
 
 What other challenges does the Central African Republic face? 
 
 Despite its richness of natural resources, the country is stymied by a landlocked position, a poor transportation system, a largely unskilled work force and a legacy of misdirected macroeconomic policies, the CIA's World Factbook said. 
 
 Its per-capita GDP -- the country's economic output divided by the population -- is just $800, putting the country in 222nd place out of 228 countries. 
 
 And more than one in 25 adults are afflicted with HIV or AIDS. 
 
 READ MORE: Central African Republic president flees capital amid violence, official says 
 
 CNN's Elwyn Lopez, Nana Karikari-apau and Catherine E. Shoichet contributed to this report. ||||| BANGUI A rebel leader in Central African Republic pledged to name a power-sharing government after seizing the capital Bangui on Sunday and declaring himself president, a spokesman said, in a bid to defuse international outcry over the coup. 
 
 The seizure of power by the Seleka rebel coalition - the latest in a series of coups and rebellions since the mineral-rich nation won independence from France in 1960 - was swiftly condemned by the United Nations and the African Union. 
 
 The United States, France and regional powerbroker Chad called on Seleka leader Michel Djotodia to respect the terms of a January power-sharing agreement signed in the Gabonese capital Libreville. 
 
 The agreement had created a government drawn from rebel leaders, the civilian opposition and loyalists of former president Francois Bozize. It was led by Prime Minister Nicolas Tiangaye, a former lawyer and member of the civilian opposition. 
 
 "We will respect the Libreville accord: a political transition of 2 to 3 years before elections," Seleka spokesman Eric Massi said by telephone. "The current prime minister remains in place and the cabinet will be slightly reshuffled." 
 
 Massi said the riverside capital Bangui was calm on Monday morning, though Seleka was still seeking to contain sporadic looting which broke out on Sunday after Bozize's fall. 
 
 Seleka, a loose coalition of five rebel groups whose name means 'alliance' in the Songo language, had accused Bozize of breaking the January agreement by failing to integrate their fighters into the army. 
 
 They launched hostilities on Thursday, quickly sweeping south to seize the capital, brushing aside a South African force of 400 troops which attempted to defend Bangui. A Reuters witness said at least nine South Africans were killed, in a setback to its efforts to project its influence on the region. 
 
 FRENCH NATIONS SAFE 
 
 Paris, which already had 250 soldiers in Central African Republic, has sent another 300 troops to ensure the security of its citizens and diplomatic installations. 
 
 Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said there was no need to evacuate its 1,200 nationals, most of whom are in the capital. 
 
 "Things are under control from our point of view regarding French nationals," Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said on Europe 1 radio. 
 
 Fabius said President Francois Hollande had spoken to U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and Chadian President Idriss Deby to suggest that any solution to the crisis should be based on the January Libreville agreement. 
 
 "For now, there is not legitimate authority there," he said, adding that it was not up to France to intervene in the internal affairs of the country. 
 
 The U.S. State Department also called on Seleka to ensure the implementation of the Libreville agreement and provide full support to Tiangaye's government. Regional military power Chad said the same in a statement on Sunday. 
 
 The whereabouts of Bozize was unclear, with unconfirmed reports that he was in Democratic Republic of Congo and Cameroon. 
 
 Bozize rose to prominence in the military during the 1966-1979 rule of former dictator Jean-Bedel Bokassa, a self-styled emperor. He seized power in a 2003 coup backed by Chad but his failure to make good on promises of power sharing after winning disputed 2011 polls led to the Seleka offensive. 
 
 (Additional reporting by Ange Aboa in Yaounde and Leigh Thomas in Paris; Writing by Daniel Flynn; Editing by David Lewis)
– The rebels who yesterday took over the Central African Republic say they're going to share power with the government they ostensibly ousted. In a statement today, the rebel Seleka coalition said it would "respect the Libreville accord," a agreement negotiated in January that would set up a joint government for two to three years prior to elections. "The current prime minister remains in place, and the Cabinet will be slightly reshuffled," a spokesman said, according to Reuters. The African Union today suspended the Central African Republic and imposed sanctions and travel restrictions on it, according to the AFP. Ousted president Francois Bozize has fled to neighboring Cameroon, but will ultimately seek refuge elsewhere, a presidential official announced today. If this whole story has you asking questions like, "What is this conflict about?" or "What do the rebels want?" or "What's the Central African Republic?", CNN has a useful recap.