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BUJUMBURA, March 1 (AFP) - Around 40 armed men believed to be Hutu extremists Wednesday attacked a Burundi army camp at Cibitoke, 70 kilometres (45 miles) north of Bujumbura, a few kilometres from the Zairean border, army sources said.
Several of the men were killed in an exchange of automatic weapons fire, but no casualties were suffered by the army.
The attackers returned across the Zairean border after being repulsed, the sources said.
The Tutsi-led army has been fighting extremist militants of the Hutu majority in northwestern Burundi since last autumn and has come under regular attack by extremist rebels.
However an army source said this was the first time an operation "of such daring" had been carried out in broad daylight, previous attacks having been made at night.
Military sources said the rebels were linked to the former Hutu interior minister Leonard Nyangoma who went into hiding after refusing a power-sharing arrangement between the Tutsi minority and the majority Burundi Democratic Front loyal to President Sylvestre Ntibantunganya.
The rebels were believed to be receiving support from leaders of the Hutu genocide of Tutsis in Rwanda who subsequently fled to Zaire.
dn/bb/bm AFP AFP
