Leading the News -
Burundi -
On January 22nd, during a visit to Bujumbura, the United Nations (U.N.) Security Council met with Burundian President Pierre Nkurunziza to advocate for peace talks and the deployment of an international force to promote stability in the wake of ongoing political violence. According to U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Samantha Power, little was achieved during the meeting. President Nkurunziza reiterated his government will not negotiate with those who attempted a coup last year and again turned down the African Union’s (AU) offer to deploy a peacekeeping force.
On January 26th, the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) reported that a team of independent experts mandated to probe violations and abuses in Burundi has not been able to enter the country. High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein recently appointed a team of three U.N. experts on to travel to the country to engage in a dialogue with Burundian authorities and other relevant actors of the ongoing crisis. The team was not able to deploy due to the lack of response from the Government of Burundi, including the issuance of visas.
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