Four people were killed Tuesday night in the Burundian capital of Bujumbura as violence persisted following the controversial re-election of President Pierre Nkurunziza.
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The opposition condemned his third-term bid as unconstitutional and provoked months of protests.
The BBC’s Prime Ndikumagenge in Burundi says the ceremony came as a surprise, as Mr Nkurunziza had been expected to be sworn in next week. There have been a string of killings since his reelection, including of a top general, killed in a rocket attack last month.
The president and his supporters argued that he was eligible to run for a third term because he was elected for the first term in 2005 by lawmakers, not by a popular vote.
Nkurunziza thwarted a coup in May, but the coup plotters have threatened with a new attempt.
The UN observer mission said the election was not free and credible and was held “in an environment of profound mistrust” between political rivals.
Burundi has been rocked by turmoil since the April announcement of Nkurunziza’s candidacy that many said violated the Constitution and a peace accord that ended Burundi’s civil war.
Nkurunziza, a 51-year-old former sports teacher and born-again Christian, was a Hutu rebel leader during the central African country’s 13-year civil war, when at least 300,000 people were killed.
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On Sunday the African Union warned that the political crisis in Burundi could have catastrophic consequences for the country and the surrounding region.
