Gunfire erupted in Burundi on Thursday, hours after an army general announced a coup and the President’s spokesman dismissed it as a “joke.”
Sporadic gunshots rocked the capital as residents expressed fear and uncertainty following the attempt to overthrow President Pierre Nkurunziza.
“People are staying indoors, not moving,” said Gad Ngajimana, who lives in the capital of Bujumbura.
“There was some fighting this morning. Gunfire lasted about 30 minutes. Now there is only gunfire about once every 10 minutes.”
He said people are confused and worried.
“The faces of the people — they are very scared,” he said. “No one knows what is going on. Either it is a coup or not, no one knows.”
An African Union official said Wednesday that a military coup attempt is underway. But despite bursts of gunfire in the capital, the government denied it’s under threat.
Reports of a coup are “a joke,” government spokesman Willy Nyamitwe said. The President’s office said some soldiers had declared an “imaginary” coup. It appealed for calm, saying security forces are looking for the culprits.
‘We don’t know where the President is’
Nkurunziza joined a summit of African leaders Wednesday, who met in nearby Tanzania to discuss the escalating chaos in his nation.
It was unclear whether he returned to his nation following the summit.
“We don’t know where the President is — we are relying on international news,” Ngajimana said.
Burundi has closed its international airport and land borders, the U.S. Embassy told its citizens in an alert. Some airlines, including Kenya Airways, canceled their flights to Bujumbura until further notice.
Ex-intelligence chief: President dismissed
Army Gen. Godefroid Niyombareh announced on radio Wednesday that the President had been dismissed. CNN could not independently confirm whether the coup attempt was successful.
Niyombareh is the former head of Burundian intelligence. The President fired him in February.
Postpone elections, neighbors say
The President registered last week to run for a third term, defying protesters who’ve taken to the streets since April over his bid to stay in office.
Deadly protests have hit the nation as he seeks to extend his 10-year rule.
The President has a two-term limit as part of an agreement that helped end Burundi’s ethnic civil war. Critics say his planned run violates the constitution.
Burundi’s constitutional court ruled that he is eligible because he was picked by parliament, not elected by people, during his first term.
At least seven candidates have registered for the presidential race scheduled for next month. Among them is prominent opposition leader Agathon Rwasa, who helped lead rebel fighters in the country’s 1993-2003 civil war.
East African Community leaders called for the elections to be postponed, saying conditions are “not conducive” to hold them.
Tens of thousands displaced
As clashes between police and protesters have raged, the international community has urged both sides to refrain from violence.
About 70,000 refugees have streamed into the Democratic Republic of Congo, Tanzania and Rwanda, according to the United Nations.
History of tensions
The current tension seems to revolve around politics.
It boils down to the determination of Nkurunziza to hold onto power and protesters whose goal is to prevent his candidacy. But Burundi’s history of ethnic violence makes it especially vulnerable to deep divisions.
Tensions between ethnic Hutus and Tutsis fueled the country’s civil war, which left about 300,000 people dead.
Violence between Hutus and Tutsi in Burundi could spill into neighboring Rwanda and in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Burundi, like Rwanda, has a Hutu majority and a Tutsi minority. While the current crisis is rooted in politics, some observers fear the government might try to stoke ethnic animosities in a last-ditch effort to retain power.