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Rebels blame government for increased fighting

    NAIROBI

    The rebel CNDD-FDD has denied responsibility for the recent upsurge in violence in Burundi, and has put the blame instead on the government. FDD spokesman Jerome Ndiho told IRIN on Thursday that the army had launched an offensive against rebel positions, ahead of Friday's visit to Burundi by peace mediator Nelson Mandela, and the rebels were defending themselves.

    He claimed that by "intensifying the fighting", President Pierre Buyoya wanted to "prove to Mandela that it was not the time to dismantle the regroupment camps". He added that the FDD supported Mandela's visit to Burundi and hoped it would make progress towards the FDD's key demands that the regroupment camps be dismantled and political prisoners freed. Ndiho reiterated that unless these two demands were met, the FDD would not take part in the Arusha peace process. He could not confirm a reported face-to-face meeting in Johannesburg next month between FDD and army leaders, but stressed that the FDD could negotiate anywhere, "not necessarily in Arusha". Ndiho also said he could not comment on reports of a rebel ambush on "Route Nationale 1", north of Bujumbura on Sunday, as he did not have all the facts.

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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