Grenade attack in the city center in Bujumbura has left dozens injured in what was called by the Burundian president a terrorist attack.
During the rush hours in the evening of Friday night May.10th .2024, couple of grenade were pelted around the town including the bus park where hundreds of people were queuing for public transport.
“Our deepest condolences to those injured in a terror attack at the former city market…soon or later the perpetrators will be arrested and face justice,” a statement read from Burundi president Evariste Ndayishimiye’s X account formerly known as as Twitter after the attack.
The Burundi government is yet to make a public statement on the number of casualties but eye witnesses say that some victims of the attack were feared dead.
The grenade attacks comes at a moment when Burundi is months away from the legislative elections, it is yet to be known the perpetrators as no one or any group has come out to claim the attack.
Armed attacks in Burundi have been witnessed since the beginning of this year with a rebel group based in the Democratic Republic of Congo (Red Tabara) claiming the attacks that led to dozens of people being killed.
Burundi had since end of last year closed its borders with the neighboring Rwanda, accusing Kigali of supporting and harboring the Red Tabara rebels that has continued to attack the country. An allegation that Rwanda has repeatedly denied.
Red Tabara is a rebel group that was formed and came to be known in 2015 after the failed coup attempt to oust president Pierre Nkurunziza, according to the Burundian government the mastermind of the 2015 attempted coup fled to neighboring Rwanda who then gained support, shelter and finance to create the Red Tabara rebel group.
Gitega’s relation with Rwanda continued to deteriorate after Kigali turned down the request to handover the 2015 failed coup plotters to Burundi.