International News / Politics

4 killed in apparent revenge attack in Burundi capital

Burundi's President Pierre Nkurunziza is sworn in for a third term at a ceremony in the parliament in Bujumbura, Burundi, Thursday, Aug. 20, 2015. Without any fanfare or even a public announcement beforehand, Nkurunziza was sworn in for a third term on Thursday in this central African country which has been plagued by political violence that has left more than 100 people dead and tens of thousands of refugees. (AP Photo/Gildas Ngingo)

Burundi’s President Pierre Nkurunziza is sworn in for a third term at a ceremony in the parliament in Bujumbura, Burundi, Thursday, Aug. 20, 2015. Without any fanfare or even a public announcement beforehand, Nkurunziza was sworn in for a third term on Thursday in this central African country which has been plagued by political violence that has left more than 100 people dead and tens of thousands of refugees. (AP Photo/Gildas Ngingo)

BUJUMBURA, Burundi (AP) — Four people were killed Tuesday night in the Burundian capital of Bujumbura as violence persisted following the controversial re-election of President Pierre Nkurunziza.

The four friends were shot in a bar, an apparent revenge attack against members of the ruling party, said witnesses in the volatile neighborhood of Musaga.

Musaga resident Pascal Nsengiyumva said it was “horrible to wake up with people killed beside us.” The bodies were still at the crime scene Wednesday morning as residents waited for the police to arrive.

Earlier this month, a former head of the intelligence services and a key ally of the president, Lt. Gen. Adolphe Nshimirimana, was killed in a drive-by shooting in Bujumbura, sparking concerns of revenge killings as regime loyalists and opponents target each other. Nshimirimana is believed to have helped the government defeat an attempted military coup in May.

The day after Nshimirimana was killed, there was an assassination attempt on Pierre Claver Mbonimpa, a prominent rights activist and government critic.

On Saturday, a former army chief of staff during Burundi’s civil war, Col. Jean Bikomagu, was shot and killed outside his home in Bujumbura.

 

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