Gunmen opened fire on civilians near Bujumbura, Burundi, the African country’s army announced on Sunday, without giving any casualty figures, in an attack claimed by a rebel group that launches attacks from across the border, from its territory. DR Congo.

In a statement, the RED-Tabara rebel group claimed responsibility for the attack that took place last Saturday night, which it said resulted in the destruction of an air communications tower in Bubanza province, about 13 kilometers north of the financial capital Bujumbura.

The organization did not mention any casualties in the statement it uploaded to X (the former Twitter).

But three sources – a local government official and two residents of the Gihanga community, where the attack took place – said they heard explosions around 9:40 p.m. [σ.σ. τοπική ώρα· στις 22:40 ώρα Ελλάδας] and that two people were killed and another was wounded by gunfire.

The army confirmed that an attack had been carried out against civilians, but did not mention any casualties.

“These people fired at civilians who were in two vehicles,” armed forces spokesman Colonel Philibert Bigereque told AFP.

Asked if there were any casualties and about the assumption of responsibility for the attack against aviation infrastructure, the colonel limited himself to saying that these were matters concerning “public security”, without giving any other clarification.

An AFP source in the local government, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said police and security forces were chasing the attackers, but it is believed they may have already retreated to the other side of the border, in DR Congo, just 5km away. from the location of the attack.

“People are afraid, as for more than a year there have been attacks in our area, after the deployment of our army on the other side of the border,” added the same source.

In August 2022, Burundi deployed hundreds of troops to DR Congo, South Kivu, as part of an East African military force tasked with countering armed organizations that have taken refuge in the region.

RED-Tabara, which was born ten years ago and is based in the hinterland of South Kivu, is today considered one of the most active rebel organizations in Burundi. It is blamed for most of the deadly attacks and ambushes in the country since 2015.

In particular, he is said to have been responsible for a series of attacks in 2020 that left 40 dead in the ranks of the security forces and the youth of the ruling CNDD-FDD party.