admin
Bujumbura — The Burundian general who launched a coup yesterday ordered the closure of Bujumbura airport and land borders, as President Pierre Nkurunziza tried to fly home to his troubled nation from Tanzania. “I order the closure of the airport and border, and I ask every citizen and law enforcement down to the airport to protect it,” General Godefroid Niyombare said in the radio broadcast.
East African leaders condemned the attempted coup in Burundi yesterday by Gen Niyombare who declared that he had deposed Nkurunziza for seeking to run for a third term in office.
The summit’s host, Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete, made the statement after a meeting of leaders from the five-nation East African Community, which also groups Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda and Burundi.
A Tanzanian Foreign Ministry official said Nkurunziza had not attended the discussions and had left Tanzania for Burundi. — AFP
Online Reporter