In what has become the worst outbreak of violence in Burundi since May, nearly 90 people have been confirmed dead during the clash on Friday, army officials said Saturday.
Blasts and gunfire was heard through the streets of Bujumbura on Friday as the residents, as well as police officials, spent the entire day collecting the bullet-ridden bodies of the city streets. The city remained calm throughout the night and into the Saturday morning. During the shootout, 79 attackers were killed and 45 others were captured. The gunmen aimed three military sites in Bujumbura, where four police officers, as well as four soldiers, were killed, according to Reuters.
Samantha Power, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, said "high-level political dialogue" needs to happen between the government and the opposition party in order to diffuse the situation and avoid a mass conflict. The military sites were attacked at 4:00 a.m. Friday. The U.N. has spoken out through Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, who stated that anyone who was found committing human rights violations will be held personally accountable. The U.N. has also said that violence since April has increased and that more than 240 people have been killed, which has urged more than 200,000 Burundians to flee the country, Voice of America reported.
A witness said that some of the dead had their hands tied behind their backs. Numerous people in the neighborhood had feared to go out due to being shot. A 14-year-old boy was found dead while he was going to buy sugar. Baratuza, the army's spokesman, said that the attack was planned in order to steal weapons and free the prisoners.
The riots and violence have been largely caused by opposition against President Pierre Nkurunziza's third term, which has been deemed unconstitutional and has provoked a great deal of hate among the people, according to The New York Times.
The U.S. said that it is "deeply alarmed" by the violence in Bujumbura and has called on neighboring countries to start negotiations between the Burundi government and the opposition in order to maintain peace.
