Rwanda: May 9, 2003

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Theres still not much peace to keep in Burundi. The Burundian government said that its forces had killed at least 100 FDD rebels in a series of battles in the Kibira forest. Two villages were specifically mentioned, Ndubura and Ruce (both are northeast Bujumbura). There were conflicting accounts of Burundian Army casualties, though  a Burundian officer who, asked for anonymity,  said 19 Burundian soldiers were killed and 42 were wounded in the actions that took place over a five day period. This looks like another government offensive into the Kirbira forest. On May 7 other government troops fought with FDD rebels in the eastern province of Ruyigi. The government claimed its troops killed 23 FDD rebels in that battle. The report called the Ruyigi battle a pre-emptive action. This usually means the government got a tip on a rebel movement and tried to set up a blocking position outside a village to prevent a rebel attack.