Opposition activist assassinated in Burundi

BUJUMBURA, Burundi

Abdul Ndayiezye, a member of Burundi’s opposition National Liberation Forces party, was assassinated by anonymous armed men in the capital Bujumbura on Wednesday, according to local sources speaking to Anadolu Agency.

Hundreds of people were present at the funeral holding signs saying “No to a third presidential term for Nkurunziza” and “No to the violation of the constitution.”

The National Liberation Forces party is not recognized by the government.

Burundi has been rocked by protest since the ruling the National Council for the Defense of Democracy – Forces for the Defense of Democracy named President Pierre Nkurunziza – in power since 2005 – its candidate for the June presidential polls.

Blame for the attack immediately fell on young supporters of the ruling party.

A local resident told the Anadolu Agency: “Abdul Ndayiezye was killed because he belonged to the opposition and because he used to give some food out to protestors.”

Another source said the attack took started at 23:30 local time and that hand grenades were used.

Burundi’s situation took a turn for the worse earlier last month when a group of army generals staged a failed coup attempt against Nkurunziza while he was attending a regional summit in Tanzania.

The opposition says Nkurunziza does not have the right to seek a third term, citing Burundi's constitution, which limits the number of terms a president can serve to two.

However, Burundi's Constitutional Court recently ruled that Nkurunziza's third-term bid would not violate the constitution.

The court ruled that, since he was elected in 2005 by parliament and not by the people, Nkurunziza's first stint in office should not be counted as a first presidential term per se.