Burundi on brink of civil war: UN official

UN high commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein on Thursday warned that Burundi was at a bursting point and on the "very cusp" of a civil war.

He made the remarks at a special session of the UN Human Rights Council on preventing the further deterioration of the human rights situation in Burundi.

"The carnage of last week confirmed the extent to which violence and intimidation are catapulting the country back to the past," the high commissioner said.

He urged the international community to take "robust, decisive" action on the situation in Burundi, to avert a civil war that could have serious ethnic overtones as well as alarming regional consequences.

According to the latest UN figures, at least 400 people have been killed since April 26 this year, of which up to 68 may have been extra-judicially executed in November.

UN figures also revealed that at least 3,496 people have been arrested in relation to the political crisis, and 220,000 people are now refugees in neighboring countries, with many others internally displaced.

"Crucially, there needs to be very close monitoring of the borders with neighbouring countries. All appropriate measures must be taken to stop the reported flow of weapons into Burundi. The use of drones should be considered as one method of conducting such monitoring," Zeid said. Endit