Three cars burned in Burundi's capital amid anti-president protests

Three cars were burned in a fire caused by a possible molotov cocktail near a bank in Burundi's capital Bujumbura, witnesses have told Xinhua, as unrest sparked by President Pierre Nkurunziza's bid for a third term continues.

"I was just in a shop near the Kenyan Commercial Bank where the incident took place. It was around noon when we heard an explosion from one of the three cars. The fire spread to the other two cars, but the criminals ran away," said a witness.

The explosion was not too loud, he said, adding that it might be a molotov cocktail that caused the fire.

The firefighters later came and extinguished the fire.

"Two police firefighter trucks managed to protect the bank and other infrastructures near the three burning cars," said the witness.

Bujumbura Mayor Saidi Djuma also visited the scene of the incident and suspected it could have been carried out by protesters against the president's re-election bid.

"These are acts of intimidation that can be compared to attacks of terrorists. These acts are intended to prevent people from going to work in Bujumbura city center," Djuma told reporters.

The National Police Spokesman, Pierre Nkurikiye, told Xinhua an investigation is underway to identify the criminals.

Burundi has been in turmoil since April 25 when Nkurunziza announced that he will run for a third term in the June elections, despite warnings at home and abroad.

Clashes between protesters and police, mainly in Bujumbura, have left more than 30 dead, according to Burundi's civil society groups.

Nkurunziza has been in power since 2005.

Opponents say his decision violates the constitution that limits the president to two terms in office.

His supporters however argue that his first term does not count as he was appointed by parliament, not elected by people.

Burundi is to hold the legislative and communal elections on June 5 and the presidential election on June 26. Endi