The leader of a Burundi opposition party and his bodyguard were shot dead today, Saturday May 23rd in the capital by gunmen after weeks of anti-government protests against President Pierre Nkurunziza’s bid for a third term.
Zedi Feruzi was the head of the Union for Peace and Development (UPD) and was walking home alongside his bodyguard in Bujumbura’s Ngagara district when he was attacked and killed.
Residents claim that a third person, believed to be another police officer tasked with protecting Feruzi, was seriously injured in the incident.
“We heard around 20 gunshots, everyone fell to the ground, people saw a Toyota car speeding away,” said a neighbour, who did not witness the shooting himself.
Burundi is facing its deepest crisis since the end of an ethnically fueled civil war in 2005. The unrest was triggered after the president announced his decision to seek another five years in office.
