Burundi 'coup plotters' appear in court

Troops have been removing barricades from streets in the capital Bujumbura

Eighteen people have appeared in court in Burundi accused of helping to organise a failed coup against President Pierre Nkurunziza, lawyers and relatives said.

They are reported to include an army general and two police commissioners.

Gen Godefroid Niyombare, who launched the coup bid on Wednesday, is said to be still on the run.

Earlier, President Nkurunziza thanked the army for thwarting the coup and appealed for calm.Supporters of President Pierre Nkurunziza celebrated his return in Bujumbura

Those who appeared in court in the capital, Bujumbura, on Saturday included former defence minister General Cyrille Ndayirukiye and police commissioners Zenon Ndabaneze and Hermenegilde Nimenya, according to lawyer Anatole Miburo, quoted by AFP news agency.

Mr Miburo said they had been accused of attempting to overthrow the state.

He also said that they had been beaten after their arrest on Friday. "They were seriously beaten, in particular General Ndayirukiye," he said.

Relatives of two of the accused told the Reuters news agency that the suspects had visible injuries and that one had lost hearing in one ear due to a beating in the cells.

Some demonstrations continued in Bujumbura on Saturday, despite calls from the president that they stop.

Protesters carried banners and sang as they marched through the streets.


President Nkurunziza was in Tanzania when military leaders moved against his bid for a third term on Wednesday.

He returned to the country on Friday, initially travelling to his northern hometown of Ngozi, before continuing to the presidential palace in Bujumbura.

Security remains tight in the capital, where private radio stations are still closed and soldiers and police have been patrolling the streets looking for anyone involved in the coup.

The BBC's East Africa Correspondent Karen Allen says the president has moved quickly to reassert his authority.

There is nervousness inside and outside Burundi that old ethic wounds could be re-opened, she says.

The unrest started on 26 April, with protests sparked by Mr Nkurunziza's announcement a day earlier that he would run for re-election in June.

Opponents said the bid contravened the constitution, which states a president can only be elected to two terms.

The president argued that he was entitled to a third term because he was first appointed to the role by parliament in 2005, rather than elected.

Since then at least 25 people have been killed in unrest and more than 105,000 people have fled the country.