Latest news with #Bujumbura
Bloomberg
6 days ago
- General
- Bloomberg
Taps Run Dry in Top Burundi Cities as Flooding Risk Looms
The water-pipeline system in the biggest cities in Burundi has collapsed, with residents resorting to taking buckets to central pickup points and rivers to obtain the basic commodity. A national utility piped supplies into homes three times a week in the largest city of Bujumbura and in the capital, Gitega, until June. But higher demand, a network that hasn't seen upgrades since the 1980s and the start of the dry season last month ground this supply to a halt, leaving people scrambling.
CBS News
02-07-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
6 people accused of witchcraft killed, 2 of them burned alive, in Burundi, official says: "Unspeakable barbarity"
Six people accused of witchcraft were killed, burned alive, stoned or beaten by a militia in Burundi, a local official told AFP on Wednesday. The official and witnesses, who all asked for anonymity, said the incident happened on Monday after accusations made by members of the ruling party's powerful youth movement, known as the Imbonerakure. The group is described as a militia by the United Nations and rights organizations. "A group of young Imbonerakure entered the homes of about 10 people accused of witchcraft. They then attacked them," according to the official from Gasarara Hill, six miles east of Burundi's economic capital, Bujumbura. "Six people were killed, two of them burned alive. The others were beaten to death with clubs or stoned with large stones thrown at their heads," the official said. "It was horrific, unspeakable barbarity." The official said three further people were also beaten but were ultimately rescued after police intervened. Several unverified videos have circulated on social media since Tuesday. Some of the clips were authenticated to AFP by two witnesses, who also identified the group as the Imbonerakure. Several rights groups, including Human Rights Watch, have accused the Imbonerakure of killing and torturing dozens of people, particularly under the authoritarian rule of former president Pierre Nkurunziza, in power from 2005 until 2020. "Imbonerakure members, some of whom are armed, have arrested, ill-treated, and killed suspected opponents, sometimes in collaboration with or with the support of local administrative officials, police, or intelligence agents," according to Human Rights Watch. Bujumbura provincial governor Desire Nsengiyumva said on Tuesday that 12 people had been arrested over the incident. He denounced the "unacceptable mob justice," saying locals had wrongly attributed recent unexplained deaths to the victims. The tiny nation is predominantly Christian, and traditional beliefs are deeply rooted with unexplained deaths often blamed on witchcraft. Only last year, the Supreme Court sentenced a former prime minister to life imprisonment for charges "including using witchcraft to threaten the president's life, destabilizing the economy and illegal enrichment." Belief in witchcraft remains common in many rural communities along the west African coast, and elsewhere in the continent. Earlier this year, Amnesty International said hundreds of people suspected of witchcraft in Ghana face rampant human rights abuses including murder. In February, two men in Zambia were charged with practicing witchcraft and possessing charms intended to harm the country's president. Belief in witchcraft is also common in some rural communities in Angola despite strong opposition from the church in the predominantly Catholic former Portuguese colony. Last year, police said about 50 people died in Angola after being forced to drink an herbal potion to prove they were not sorcerers. During a 2009 trip to Angola, Pope Benedict urged Catholics to shun witchcraft and sorcery.
Daily Mail
02-07-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Six people accused of witchcraft are killed by mob who burn two alive, stone others to death or fatally beat them with clubs
Six people accused of witchcraft have been burned alive, stoned or beaten to death in an act of 'horrific, unspeakable barbarity' in Burundi. The mob dragged the group from their homes on Monday after accusations were made by members of the ruling party's powerful youth movement, known as the Imbonerakure, according to witnesses. Imbonerakure is described as a militia by the United Nations and rights organisations. The two men who were burned alive have been named locally as Rwoba and Bimara, as well as another man, Vinicius, who was beaten with sticks. The attacks came after unfounded rumours circulated around the cause of recent deaths including that of a teacher and child, RPA said. Locals blamed witchcraft as the reason, prompting the attacks. Bujumbura provincial governor Desire Nsengiyumva said yesterday that 12 people had been arrested over the incident. Four more have since been arrested, Le Journal Africa reported. Mr Nsengiyumva denounced the 'unacceptable mob justice', saying locals had wrongly attributed recent unexplained deaths to the victims. The tiny nation is predominantly Christian, and traditional beliefs are deeply rooted with unexplained deaths often blamed on witchcraft. Only last year, the Supreme Court sentenced a former prime minister to life imprisonment for charges 'including using witchcraft to threaten the president's life, destabilising the economy and illegal enrichment'. The official said three further people were also beaten but were ultimately rescued after police intervened. One victim remains in hospital, Le Journal Africa reported. 'A group of young Imbonerakure entered the homes of about 10 people accused of witchcraft. They then attacked them,' according to the official from Gasarara Hill, 10 kilometres east of Burundi's economic capital, Bujumbura. 'Six people were killed, two of them burned alive. The others were beaten to death with clubs or stoned with large stones thrown at their heads,' the official said. 'It was horrific, unspeakable barbarity.' Several unverified videos have circulated on social media since Tuesday but two clips set on Gasarara Hill, in the Nyabibondo area, were authenticated to AFP by two witnesses, who identified the group as the Imbonerakure. Several rights groups, including Human Rights Watch, have accused the Imbonerakure of killing and torturing dozens of people, particularly under the authoritarian rule of former president Pierre Nkurunziza, in power from 2005 until 2020.
Bloomberg
12-06-2025
- Politics
- Bloomberg
Burundi Ruling Party Wins All Seats in National Assembly
Burundi's ruling party won all 108 seats in the national assembly following an election. Three indigenous lawmakers obtained seats to fulfill so-called ethnic equilibrium, taking the total allocated to 111, National Election Commission President Prosper Ntahorwamiye said Wednesday.
Al Jazeera
02-06-2025
- Business
- Al Jazeera
Photos: People in Burundi struggle amid Lake Tanganyika's endless flooding
Asha, a mother-of-four, found herself once again donning rubber boots inside her living room – the recurring cost of residing near Lake Tanganyika in Burundi, where climate change and relentless flooding have become a part of daily life. The graceful architecture of Gatumba – a town bordering the capital, Bujumbura – serves as a testament to its past prosperity. Yet for many, that memory feels remote. Increasingly, residents resort to pitching tents atop their roofs, as children drift between homes on makeshift rafts fashioned from plastic bottles. 'We've been underwater for years,' said Asha, aged 32. Lake Tanganyika is known for its cyclical fluctuations in water level, but these have been worsened by global warming, according to Bernard Sindayihebura, an urban planning and environment specialist at the University of Burundi. He explained that surface temperatures on Africa's second-largest lake have climbed steadily, leading to heavier rainfall and pushing the lake above its historical average since 2018. With the lake swollen, the Ruzizi River is unable to drain into it, resulting in persistent floods that inundate surrounding areas like Gatumba on the northern shore. The situation escalated in 2023, when Asha and her family were forced to flee a particularly severe flood. With water rising as high as her waist, she had to seek shelter in temporary accommodation nearby. The following year, and again this year, they were displaced repeatedly, as floodwaters engulfed entire neighbourhoods. Burundi ranks among the world's poorest nations, standing 187th out of 193 on the United Nations Human Development Index. The UN also lists it as one of the 20 countries most vulnerable to climate change. In 2024, pounding rains, magnified by the El Nino phenomenon, displaced nearly 100,000 people and claimed numerous lives, although no official figures have been released. Ariella, a mother of seven now residing in the Gateri camp for internally displaced people (IDP) in northern Burundi, spoke of losing everything in the 2020 Gatumba floods. Her house collapsed, and one of her babies was almost swept away by the floodwaters. The family moved between two different camps, only to be hit by floods again. 'We often wonder what our future will look like,' said Ariella. In Gatumba, community leader Jean-Marie Niyonkuru, 42, said residents are doing their best to cope, but conditions remain dire. 'Children suffer from diarrhoea because the water has mixed with toilet water, flooding the streets,' he said. 'There is a lot of cholera.' Save the Children is now appealing for assistance, but critical funding has dried up. Under President Donald Trump, 83 percent of United States humanitarian projects have been suspended, with climate-related programmes among those most at risk. The US previously provided 40 percent of global aid, and no other country has bridged the gap.
