A humanitarian crisis loomed Thursday over the Central African Republic as tens of thousands sought refuge in makeshift camps around the capital Bangui following a wave of massacres.

Sectarian violence that claimed at least 400 lives in Bangui last week had abated following the weekend arrival of a 1,600-strong French intervention force, but many were still afraid to return to their homes.

The father of a slain French soldier has described how disarmed Muslim fighters in the Central African Republic were lynched by a Christian mob in harrowing testimony that raised the specter of a new wave of sectarian killing in the troubled state.

President Francois Hollande said France's intervention in CAR was "essential in the face of abuses and massacres," vowing the mission would continue until African forces could take over.

President Francois Hollande on Tuesday said France's intervention in the Central African Republic is dangerous but vital to avoid a bloodbath, during a visit to shore up morale after two elite French soldiers were killed.

Hollande flew into the curfew-bound capital Bangui from Johannesburg after attending a memorial service for South African peace icon Nelson Mandela.

French President Francois Hollande was expected Tuesday in the Central African Republic, on the second day of an operation to disarm rogue rebels that has already killed two French soldiers.

As the poverty-stricken country's former colonial master led the military effort to restore order after a year of chaos, Washington said it was offering to fly in African peacekeepers.

French troops on Monday began disarming rebel fighters in Central African Republic, the army said in Paris, after an upsurge in violence that killed nearly 400 people.

"Things are going fairly well," a spokesman for the general staff told Agence France Presse.

French troops deployed in the strife-torn Central African Republic on Saturday, while the African Union said it would nearly double its force to try to stamp out deadly sectarian violence.

Cheering residents honked horns, danced and banged on saucepans as some 200 French troops rolled into the mainly Christian town of Bouar in the west of the country.

The African Union is to nearly double the number of troops it is sending to the Central African Republic, the French presidency announced on Saturday at the end of a mini-summit in Paris.

The announcement came just hours after France agreed to increase its number of troops from 1,200 to 1,600. The international troops are pouring into the strife-torn country following a green light from the U.N.

France on Saturday committed itself to helping establish and finance a pan-African military force capable of intervening in crises like the current conflict in the Central African Republic.

A two-day summit attended by leaders of all but a handful of African states, concluded with French President Francois Hollande pledging to help the African Union turn its plans for a rapid reaction force, agreed in principle earlier this year, into a functioning unit by 2015

All 1,200 French troops pledged for a U.N.-mandated force in the violence-hit Central African Republic have now deployed, France's defense ministry said Saturday.

"We are 24 hours ahead of schedule with the total deployment," a ministry official said, after a 200-strong contingent of reinforcements crossed the border from neighboring Cameroon on Saturday.

Under pressure from France, African leaders were set Saturday to approve the acceleration of moves to create a military force capable of intervening in crises like the current conflict in Central African Republic.

A two-day summit attended by leaders of all but a handful of African states was expected to wrap up with broad agreement on France's proposals to turn plans for an African Union rapid reaction force, agreed in principle earlier this year, into reality.