Burundi reports mass arrests of Rwandans following Ndayishimiye rallies in Imbonerakure

Reports state that on Sunday, February 16, hundreds of Rwandans and Congolese Banyamulenge were arrested in Bujumbura, the capital of Burundi, and its surrounding areas.

The arrests come after President Ndayishimiye urged the Imbonerakure and the populace at large to brace for what he saw as an impending Rwandan onslaught.

The people who were arrested in Bujumbura were taken to the regions of Gihanga and Bubanza for “screening” in military trucks.

In Cibitoke and Buterere, young males from Rwanda and Congo were reportedly arrested after being bundled in police trucks without a reason for the raids.

Hours after the rebels seized Bukavu city, Ndayishimiye, whose soldiers fight with the Congolese army in the conflict against the M23 in eastern DR Congo, tweeted on Sunday about the purported impending Rwandan onslaught.

Bukavu is a city in the Congo that borders Burundi and Rwanda. It is estimated that Burundi sent roughly 10,000 troops to the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. Burundian soldiers and Congolese soldiers escaped as M23 insurgents moved closer to Bukavu.

Arrests and hate speech against Congolese Banyamulenge refugees in Burundi have been reported.

Accused of continuing brutality against Congolese Tutsi villages, Burundian forces in eastern DR Congo are a part of the Congolese government alliance that also includes Wazalendo militias and the FDLR genocidal group.

Burundian forces were urged to leave DR Congo by the AFC/M23 on Saturday, claiming their presence was “unjustified.”

In a statement, rebel spokesperson Lawrence Kanyuka said, “The military operations carried out by these forces in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) have exacerbated ethnic cleansing, mass atrocities, and an unprecedented humanitarian crisis, posing a serious threat to the local population.”

Therefore, it is essential that they depart the DRC right away.

With an unstable economical climate, internal political strife, and the May parliamentary and local elections, Ndayishimiye is in a difficult position.