Burundi army patrols capital
Attacks by unidentified gunmen on barracks last Friday and subsequent conflicts have left dozens dead
Burundi’s army patrolled the streets of the capital yesterday as a rights group demanded a probe into the deaths of 87 people last week, the deadliest violence of the East African nation’s eightmonth-old political crisis.
Attacks by unidentified gunmen on barracks in Bujumbura last Friday and subsequent violence left dozens dead, including eight army officers, military spokesman Colonel Gaspard Baratuza told reporters the following day. The European Union (EU) said security forces had carried out summary executions, while New York-based Human Rights Watch urged a “serious ... investigation.”
The “dramatic worsening of the situation demands a specific reaction,” the EU said on Sunday in a statement. It called for the immediate start of talks in Uganda with the support of the African Union.
Landlocked Burundi, which holds 6 per cent of the world’s nickel reserves, descended into violence in April when President Pierre Nkurunziza announced he would seek a third term, which he won in July. Critics say he violated a twoterm limit spelt out in a 2005 peace accord that ended a 12year civil war. More than 300 people have been killed in the past eight months.
Travel restrictions
The US on Sunday warned its citizens against travel to Burundi and ordered the departure of dependents of US government personnel as well as non-emergency staff. Secretary of State John Kerry urged an end to the killing, via Twitter, criticising a “disproportionate response by security services.”
Special envoys from the UN, US, EU and African Union discussed regional efforts to resolve Burundi’s crisis in Uganda last week. The five-nation East African Community is organising the dialogue, with Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni appointed to lead negotiations.