Gunfire breaks out in Burkina Faso capital amid coup fears

OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso — Soldiers arrested Burkina Faso's transitional president and prime minister on Wednesday, raising fears of a coup just weeks before the country is to hold an election to replace its longtime leader, who was ousted in a popular uprising late last year.

Hours later, gunfire erupted in the capital as the soldiers behind the standoff tried to disperse protesters marching on the presidential palace, where the two transitional leaders were being detained. It was not clear whether any of the demonstrators were wounded.

Members of the presidential security unit, formed by the nation’s previous leader, have been publicly at odds with the transitional heads in recent months. On Wednesday, they banned interim president Michel Kafando and prime minister Lt. Col. Yacouba Isaac Zida from leaving, and were seen putting up barricades around the presidential palace.

Burkina Faso hosts French special forces and serves as an important ally of France and the United States in the fight against Islamic militants in West Africa.

Moumina Cheriff Sy, the speaker of the transitional parliament, called the developments “a blow to the republic and its institutions.”

There was no public claim by the military that it was controlling the country.

News of the standoff created panic here in the capital, where people closed shops early and headed home. The protests that had led to President Blaise Compaoré’s ouster had escalated to a point where the parliament building was set ablaze.

There have been tensions over the Oct. 11 presidential election, which many hoped would strengthen democracy in the country after the 27-year rule of Compaoré, because members of his party have been declared ineligible to run. Anyone who supported the ex-president’s bid to amend the constitution so he could seek another term is also banned from running.

Another chief source of tension has been a dispute between the transitional officials and the Presidential Security Regiment, which was behind Wednesday’s standoff. The 1,300-member group was set up in 1996 by Compaoré and had previously called for the resignation of the interim prime minister. The prime minister initially had threatened to disband the group but later reversed course.

Then, on Monday, a truth and reconciliation commission released a report again calling for the disbanding of the unit. Human rights groups have accused the regiment of opening fire on unarmed demonstrators in October, when huge protests forced Compaoré to resign.