Foreign Affairs

muriel_volestrangler

(101,347 posts) Tue Jun 9, 2020, 11:29 AM Jun 2020

Burundi President Pierre Nkurunziza dies of 'cardiac arrest' at 55

Burundi's President Pierre Nkurunziza, aged 55, has died after suffering a cardiac arrest, the government says

He was admitted to hospital on Saturday after feeling unwell, his condition improved but on Monday he had a cardiac arrest and efforts to revive him were unsuccessful, the government says.

Mr Nkurunziza was due to step down from the presidency in August.
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After a change in the constitution, he was able to run for a further term in last month's election but he decided to retire and was to be known as the "supreme guide to patriotism".

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-52984119

Like neighboring Rwanda, Burundi has a Hutu/Tutsi mix, and teetered on the brink of genocides without ever becoming the living hell of that other country - let's hope this doesn't trigger anything.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burundi#Civil_war_and_genocides

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Burundi President Pierre Nkurunziza dies of 'cardiac arrest' at 55 (Original Post) muriel_volestrangler Jun 2020 OP

many suspect he died of Covid-19 muriel_volestrangler Jun 2020 #1

muriel_volestrangler

(101,347 posts)

1. many suspect he died of Covid-19

Reply to muriel_volestrangler (Original post)

Wed Jun 10, 2020, 07:33 AM

Jun 2020

Flags flew at half mast in Burundi on Monday, the morning after the announcement of the sudden death of the president, Pierre Nkurunziza, who many suspect died of Covid-19.

The first lady, Denise Bucumi, who had been recovering from the coronavirus in a hospital in Nairobi, Kenya, flew back to Bujumbura late on Tuesday, a source in the presidency told AFP on condition of anonymity.
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Gerard, a party member in Nkurunziza’s home province of Ngozi, was quoted by the French news agency as saying he could not understand how Nkurunziza “had died just like that … we are obliged to believe this official version, but I don’t understand.”

Rumours swirled on social media, with some wondering if he had been poisoned, while others suspecting he had been infected by coronavirus. Burundi has largely ignored the pandemic, which Nkurunziza declared had spared Burundi thanks to God.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2020/jun/10/coronavirus-live-news-who-urges-pakistan-to-reimpose-lockdown-as-brazil-restores-covid-19-data?page=with:block-5ee0b8e68f087583352295ae#block-5ee0b8e68f087583352295ae

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