The prospect of a rebel takeover of the Central African capital Bangui dimmed Tuesday as the regional bloc sent troops to prop up the regime of President Francois Bozize and force peace talks.

With the Seleka rebel coalition threatening to march on the capital, Gabon, Congo-Brazzaville and Cameroon have each pledged 120 troops to join 400 Chadian soldiers already deployed by multinational African peacekeeping force FOMAC to protect the key town of Damara, according to a FOMAC source.

Central African Republic President Francois Bozize is open to a national unity government after he has talks with rebel fighters, and he will not run for president in 2016, the head of the African Union said Sunday.

After meeting with Bozize in the capital Bangui, AU chief Thomas Boni Yayi said he was ready to go to the Gabonese capital Libreville for talks to end a crisis that has seen rebels sweep across the impoverished country and close in on the capital.

Government soldiers in the Central African Republic battled to re-capture a rebel-held city Friday, a military official said, despite regional efforts to seek a peaceful end to the growing crisis.

The military official said the fighting in Bambari, which rebels from the Seleka coalition seized Sunday, was "especially violent", and a humanitarian source said witnesses some 60 kilometers (35 miles) away could hear detonations and heavy weapons fire for several hours.

The United States evacuated its embassy in the Central African Republic on Thursday and temporarily halted its operations, amid security fears after rebels seized large swathes of the country.

The State Department said it had not broken off diplomatic ties with the beleaguered government in Bangui, but warned U.S. citizens not to travel to the mineral-rich but chronically unstable country while unrest continues.

The U.N. is evacuating staff from the Central African Republic and the U.S. has warned its citizens to leave as rebel fighters close in on the tense capital Bangui.

France also deployed troops to protect its embassy after it was attacked by demonstrators calling for the former colonial power to help push back the rebels who have already seized several towns in the north of the resource-rich but poverty-stricken nation.

President Francois Hollande Wednesday ordered tightened security for French nationals in the Central African Republic after violent protests denouncing the former colonial ruler for failing to help stem a rebel offensive.

He also called for the protection of the French embassy in the capital Bangui, which was attacked by protesters who tore down the French flag, Hollande's office said in a statement.

Angry demonstrators hurled projectiles and tore down the French flag at France's embassy in the Central African Republic capital Bangui on Wednesday, protesting at a lack of help to deter rebels who have occupied a large swathe of the country.

Former colonial power France "has the tendency to abandon us," a protester said as the group arrived from an earlier sit-in outside the U.S. embassy. "We no longer need France, France may as well take its embassy and leave."

Rebels waging an offensive in the Central African Republic seized the major north-central town of Kaga-Bandoro on Tuesday, a military source said.

"The rebels came into town in vehicles and on motorcycles, and started using heavy weapons to fire at strategic points: a military base, police stations, the customs office. Members of the Central African armed forces resisted briefly then began to retreat towards Sibut," about 130 kilometers (80 miles) south, the source said.

The government of the Central African Republic and rebels who have captured several towns in a sweep across the country said on Monday they were prepared for talks to end the conflict, but both sides set conditions.

The Bangui government said it would not consider dialogue until the fighters withdraw from positions they have seized over the past two weeks, while the rebels demanded a ceasefire.

Central African rebels seized a town near the border with Chad on Wednesday, a day after Chadian troops entered the country at Bangui's request to help the army contain the rebel offensive.

The escalating violence drew calls from former colonial power France for a broad national dialogue.