Burundi's story told after one year on

“There had been lots of strange boys around the neighbourhood,” he says. “They looked at me, then they rubbed their hands together like they were pretending to wash clothes. They said, ‘We’re going to clean you people from this place like this.’ ” A year ago this week, Pierre Nkurunziza, Burundi’s president, said he would run for a third term in office, despite constitutional two-term limits. His announcement, later approved by the courts, sparked street protests and then deadly security

crackdowns. A thuggish ruling party militia called the Imbonerakure swept the country hunting opponents, spawning reprisal gangs manned by armed fighters opposed to the president. Hundreds died.

In the weeks that followed, tens of thousands of people fled the small central African country. Today, more than a quarter of a million Burundians have sought safety in neighbouring countries, most of them – 135,000 – in Tanzania, among them Abdul and his family.

The number of refugees fleeing Burundi has slowed to roughly 280 a day on average since the start of 2016, compared to 2,500 who arrived every day in Tanzania alone during the height of the refugee crisis in May 2015. At the same time, reports from inside the country dried up. To the outside world, it appeared that the situation was stabilizing.

More is coming.....

Source: UNHCR