Burundi's President, Pierre Nkurunziza has said he has returned to the country on the Presidential Twitter site, after the army chief declared that an attempted coup staged when the East African leader was abroad had failed.
Nkurunziza had been in Tanzania when the coup began on Wednesday but his presence in the country could not beclearly verified. The office of the President later tweeted that Nkurunziza would address the nation later Today.
A Presidential official confirmed the statement, but would not say where Nkurunziza was in Burundi or how he had returned.
'Our movement has failed'
Speaking on Thursday to the AFP news agency, deputy coup leader General Cyrille Ndayirukiye said: "Personally, I recognise that our movement has failed.
"We were faced with an overpowering military determination to support the system in power."
UN condemnation
The UN Security Council has condemned both those behind the coup attempt and Nkurunziza.
In a unanimous statement on Thursday, the 15-member council said it condemned both those who "facilitate violence" against civilians and those who seek to seize power by unlawful means.
The Security Council has been divided on how to address the Burundi crisis, with Russia and China arguing that the dispute over Nkurunziza's bid for a third term is a constitutional matter that should be resolved internally.
In its statement, the Council called for "the swift return of the rule of law, and the holding of credible elections".
Source: Aljazeera
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