2020 Bugarama attack

2020 Bugarama attack
Part of RED-Tabara insurgency
Date August 23–24, 2020 Location Bugarama, Rumonge Province, Burundi Result Indecisive
Belligerents
Burundi	RED-Tabara
Casualties and losses
Unknown	5 killed
11 civilians kidnapped and killed

Between August 23 and 24, 2020, militants from RED-Tabara attacked the city of Bugarama, Burundi, killing eleven civilians and five militants.

Background

RED-Tabara was formed as a Tutsi group against the administration of Évariste Ndayishimiye and Pierre Nkurunziza. Following Nkurunziza's death a month after the 2020 Burundian general election, Ndayishimiye succeeded him and took office in July 2020.[1] RED-Tabara decried the elections, and stated they would continue to oppose Ndayishimiye.[2] In late August, the first repatriation of Burundian refugees from Rwanda began. The Burundian government had accused Rwanda of holding the refugees hostage and preventing their repatriation in July and August.[3]

Attack

The attack began on August 23, when RED-Tabara militants emerged from the forest around Bugarama and kidnapped eleven people.[4] The commander of the militants later stated that they infiltrated Burundi from the DRC's South Kivu province through Lake Tanganyika.[5] The eleven hostages were summarily executed, and then clashes broke out between the militants and the Burundian Army in the city.[3] Five militants were killed in the battle, and eventually retreated.[3] A senior Burundian government official stated that the attack likely stemmed from the repatriation of the refugees.[2] RED-Tabara claimed responsibility for the attack on August 24, after clashes had died down earlier that day, and claimed that nine policemen and twenty "militants" had been killed.[2] In the statement, RED-Tabara claimed that Hutu rebel group FDLR had infiltrated Burundian forces.[2][6]

Aftermath

RED-Tabara claimed several more attacks in Burundi on September 15, 18, and 25, claiming the deaths of fifty-nine people who they alleged were associated with the Burundian government.[7] Several RED-Tabara militants, including the commander of the Bugarama attack, were arrested in Rwanda on September 29. They claimed that the Bugarama attack was against Burundian forces and Imbonerakure.[5]

References

1. Ulloa, Carlos; María Nuñez, José; Suárez, Andrés; Lin, Chengxian (December 2017). "Design and development of a PV-T test bench based on Arduino". Energy Procedia. 141: 71–75. doi:10.1016/j.egypro.2017.11.014. ISSN 1876-6102.
2. "At least 15 dead as rebels attack southern Burundi". Reuters. August 25, 2020. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
3. "CrisisWatch: September Alerts and August Trends 2020". www.crisisgroup.org. 2020-08-31. Retrieved 2024-04-11.
4. "Burundi: Unidentified gunmen carry out attack in Bugarama (Rumonge province) August 23–24". Burundi: Unidentified gunmen carry out attack in Bugarama (Rumonge province) August 23–24 | Crisis24. Retrieved 2024-04-11.
5. "REGIONAL VERIFICATION MECHANISM (EJVM) STARTS INVESTIGATIONS ON BURUNDIAN COMBATANTS CAPTURED IN RWANDA". Rwandan Ministry of Defense. October 5, 2020. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
6. "43. Burundi (1962-present)". uca.edu. Retrieved 2024-04-11.
7. "CrisisWatch: October Alerts and September Trends 2020". www.crisisgroup.org. 2020-09-30. Retrieved 2024-04-11.