No Turning Back for Burundi Refugees

Since early April, more than 112,000 refugees have fled Burundi to Rwanda, Tanzania, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, amid rising violence and intimidation, mainly by the Imbonerakure, in the runup to June’s presidential elections.
The refugee crisis peaked after President Pierre Nkurunziza announced on 25 April that he would stand for a third term, triggering street protests in the capital, Bujumbura. After violent clashes between protesters and police, General Godefroid Niyombare last week led a coup attempt but failed to take control of the country. The crisis has raised fears of further instability in a volatile region where armed groups often crisscross borders to prey on communities, and where several civil wars have left a deep legacy of fear and distrust.