Bathily, the U.N.’s special envoy for central Africa, replaces Said Djinnit, who recently mediated talks between the government and opponents of President Pierre Nkurunziza’s controversial plan to seek a third term in office.
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Opposition protesters took to the streets for weeks, saying the move violated the constitution and a peace deal that ended an ethnically charged civil war in 2005.
Four people were killed and no fewer than 30 got injured in a series of grenade attacks in Burundi’s capital and a northern town, police say.
The court said since he was elected in 2005 by parliament and not by the people, Nkurunziza’s first stint in office should not be counted as his first presidential term.
Ngozi lies close to the president’s home village and in a region of strong support for the president.
Police blamed the attacks on opposition supporters and said three suspects had been arrested.
“A simultaneous attack on a bar in the northern town of Kirundo injured one person, ’’ Nkurikiye said”.
The outgoing UNICEF representative in Burundi says this past week’s attack on a school in the capital, Bujumbura, is a senseless tragedy.
Such grenade attacks have accompanied past elections in a country where weapons are still commonly available.
About 70 people have died in the east African country since April 26 when clashes erupted between security forces and activists protesting Nkurunziza’s bid for a third term, a rights group said on Friday.
Government spokesman Philippe Nzobonariba welcomed Bathily’s appointment but warned Bujumbura wouldn’t budge on the timings of forthcoming parliamentary and presidential elections, due to take place on June 29 and July 15.
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At least 77 people have been killed and more than 1,000 detained in the protests, according to a Burundian human-rights group. The president’s ruling CNDD-FDD party put it at more than 40.
