Burundi's former army chief assassinated, family says

Unidentified assailants have gunned down the former head of the Burundian army, Colonel Jean Bikomagu, amid warnings by the United Nations that the situation in the African country could spiral “completely out of control.”

A member of Bikomagu's family told AFP on Saturday that the Burundian army chief of staff during the civil war (1993-2006) was murdered in the capital, Bujumbura, as he was about to enter his home in the district of Kinindo.

His daughter was badly wounded in the attack and the killers fled the scene, said the source, whose name was not mentioned in the report.

The news comes less than two weeks after General Adolphe Nshimirimana, who was regarded as the country's de-facto internal security chief, was killed in a rocket attack on August 2. Nshimirimana was considered to be the right-hand man of President Pierre Nkurunziza, whose controversial re-election for a third term has triggered unrest in the country.

The day after the killing of Nshimirimana, civil rights activist Pierre-Claver Mbonimpa, who had repeatedly accused Nshimirimana of ordering the deaths of government opponents, was himself wounded in an assassination attempt and sent to Belgium for treatment.

Meanwhile, the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) has reported that the situation in Burundi continues to deteriorate amid turmoil following the July 24 presidential election.

“We urge all sides to resume dialogue before the situation spirals completely out of control,” said Ravina Shamdasani, the OHCHR spokesperson.

“Burundi has been slipping closer to the edge with every high-profile attack and killing, and we call on leaders on all sides to take concrete steps to renounce the use of violence and to resolve differences peacefully,” she said.

The impoverished nation in the heart of the troubled Great Lakes region of Central Africa plunged into turmoil late April, when President Nkurunziza announced his decision to run for a third consecutive five-year term.

The decision was denounced by the opposition, which argued the move was contrary to the constitution and the 2000 Arusha Agreement that paved the way for ending the civil war in the country.

Nkurunziza is a former sports teacher and was a Hutu rebel leader during the civil war.

The opposition boycotted the election and did not concede defeat.

"The regime in Bujumbura is desperate to stay in power, he (Nkurunziza) has declared war on the people," veteran Burundian political leader Leonard Nyangoma said on August 13, adding that security forces are targeting opponents of Nkurunziza with "numerous arrests, torture, killings and atrocities."

According to the United Nations, over 90 people have been killed in Burundi since the start of the political crisis.

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