Four dead, 7 injured as rebels shell Bujumbura

Four people were killed and seven others injured on Wednesday when rebels shelled the Burundian capital, Bujumbura, for the third consecutive day. "Seven bombs fell in Bujumbura, one near the central bank and it killed four people and injured six others; another one fell inside the market, injuring one person, others hit houses," an eyewitness told IRIN. Sources said the army was responding to the rebel attacks, driving them out of the city into the neighbouring hills. Bujumbura remained tense, with shops, banks, markets and public offices closed. Since the fighting began on Monday, 35 people are reported to have been killed, including 17 rebels and two government soldiers. The civilian death toll has not been confirmed. Thousands of residents of the city's southern suburbs have fled their homes. Government officials accused fighters loyal to Pierre Nkurunziza's faction of the Conseil national pour la defense de la democratie-Forces pour la defense de la democratie (CNDD-FDD) of forming an alliance with fighters loyal to Agathon Rwasa's Forces nationales de liberation (FNL). "The shelling on Wednesday morning could be an act of CNDD-FDD, we have evidence that Nkurunziza's rebels and those of Rwasa have made an alliance," Public Security Minister Salvator Ntihabose said. "The attacks against the capital are committed by the two movements, the proof being that some CNDD-FDD combatants are among hostages captured by the army," he told a press conference on Tuesday. The minister for communication and government spokesman, Albert Mbonerane, said the army would continue repelling the rebels. "It is clear that the FNL rebels of Agathon Rwasa have chosen war instead of talks, we must combat them in order to stop their acts of terrorism," he added. Heavy fighting continued between government troops and the FNL rebels now based in the hills surrounding Bujumbura. The army was reported to be using artillery and helicopters in their response. Burundi's Human Rights League, ITEKA, has condemned the bombing of the city's suburbs and has urged the FNL to immediately cease hostilities and start peace negotiations with the government. "ITEKA demands that the belligerents set up humanitarian corridors for civilians blocked in suburbs, in the strict respect of international humanitarian international law," Pie Ntakarutimana, the group's president, said. He said that ITEKA was also calling on humanitarian organisations to "assist the displaced, rescue the victims and ensure a safe environment by collecting the bodies". [See earlier IRIN story, "Rebels continue attacks on Bujumbura"]