BUJUMBURA, Burundi (AP) – An attempted coup in Burundi appeared on Friday to have fizzled out after the office of President Pierre Nkurunziza announced he was back in the country and the streets were mostly calm.
Along a highway in the south of the country, there were many police checkpoints but otherwise life was going on as normal.
On Thursday fighting erupted between loyalist troops and forces supporting a major general who had announced the coup bid on Wednesday while Nkurunziza was in Tanzania for a meeting with regional leaders about unrest in his country.
His bid for a third term had triggered protests, with opponents saying it violated the Constitution as well as peace accords that ended a civil war here. At least 15 people were killed in the demonstrations that began on April 26, a day after the ruling party made Nkurunziza its presidential candidate.
Burundi’s presidency announced late Thursday that Nkurunziza had returned to Burundi. He has not appeared in public. The announcement also saluted the police, who had tried to quell the demonstrations, for their patriotism.