Army denies report of 72 deaths

Meanwhile, Burundi army spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Mamert Sinarinzi said reports that 72 civilians had been killed in renewed fighting near the Tanzanian border over the weekend were false. He told IRIN on Tuesday the number corresponded to the death toll - including rebels - since January and he noted that reports of the alleged fighting were vague. He also dismissed reports that 17,000 people had been displaced. Such allegations were intended to "derail the peace process" by trying to convince the international community that Burundi was not stable. He acknowledged there had been one incident on the night of 6-7 May, when rebels attacked a church in the Nyanza Lac area. Colonel Sinarinzi added that most of the attacks were perpetrated from Tanzanian territory and that attacks by DRC-based rebels had decreased.