Citation
BUJUMBURA, April 25 (Reuter) - A military coup failed in the central
Africa state of Burundi early on Monday after moderate units refused to
take part, army chief of staff Jean Bikomagu told Reuters.
He said the situation was now under control.
Bikomagu said units of Burundi's Tutsi-dominated army attempted the
coup in the capital Bujumbura around 0100 GMT, but other units failed
to rally to them, fearful of a Hutu-Tutsi tribal bloodbath like the one
raging in neighbouring Rwanda.
We are working to restore order, we will also continue the process of
disarmament,
said Bikomagu. He added several soldiers responsibile for
the attempt had been arrested.
Burundian President Cyprien Ntaryamira was killed with his Rwandan
counterpart President Juvenal Habyarimana on April 6 when a rocket
downed their plane at the airport in the Rwandan capital Kigali.
Ntaryamira's predecessor Melchior Ndadaye, the first Hutu to hold
Burundi's presidency, was killed in a coup attempt last October.
(c) Reuters Limited 1994
