Army silent on casualties in push against rebels

Although the army said it could not yet give an accurate casualty figure in its drive to flush out rebels from a forest near the capital, Bujumbura, news organisations have reported at least 100 rebels and 30 government troops killed since the operation began nine days ago.

The numbers of wounded soldiers has overwhelmed local hospitals, Associated Press reported on Monday. However, army spokesman Col. Augustin Nzabampema told IRIN on Tuesday that the government would only give the casualty figures at the end of the army operation against the Front national de liberation (FNL) fighters holding up in the Tenga Forest, some 20 km north of the capital.

"We will finish [the job] soon," he said.

There are no civilians in the area of operation, he added, which started on 26 November. Troops have frequently dislodged FNL fighters from Tenga but have not occupied the zone, AFP reported. The Hutu rebels have been fighting the predominantly Tutsi army since the assassination of President Melchior Ndadaye in 1993. However, the FNL has stepped up its attacks since the inauguration of a power-sharing deal on 1 November between equal numbers of Tutsis and Hutus.