Burundi said on Thursday it had closed the border with Rwanda, nearly two weeks after accusing its neighbour of supporting rebels who carried out attacks on its soil.
Burundi says the RED-Tabara group staged an attack on December 22 near the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), killing 20 people, including women and children.
President Evariste Ndayishimiye has since accused Rwanda of backing the rebels — a claim denied by the Rwandan government.
In Kigali, the government said it “regrets the unilateral closure of the border by Burundi.”
“This unfortunate decision will restrict the free circulation of people and goods between the two countries and violate the principles of regional cooperation and the integration of the East Africa Community,” a statement said.
The RED-Tabara group, which has a base in the eastern DRC province of South Kivu, emerged in 2011 and is now the most active of Burundi’s rebel forces with an estimated 500 to 800 fighters.
“We have closed our borders (with Rwanda), anyone who tries to go there will not get through. The decision has been made,” Burundi’s Interior Minister Martin Niteretse told reporters on Thursday.
“After having noted that we had a bad neighbour, (Rwandan President) Paul Kagame… we stopped all relations with him until he returns to better feelings,” the minister added.
