BURUNDI COLONEL SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR CIVILIAN MASSACRE: COURT

a fugitive Burundian army officer was sentenced to death in absentia for the killing of 31 civilians at an army base in 2006, legal officials and witnesses said. "Colonel Vital Bangirinama, who supervised the massacre, was condemned to death," said Pierre Claver Mbonimpa, a local rights defender. Another senior officer and two ranking soldiers were sentenced to life imprisonment, with seven more troops handed 10-year jail terms for taking part and another five given two years behind bars for failing to act, he added. Bangirinama "fled the country with top suspects and several civilians," said Mbonimpa. President Pierre Nkurunziza had repeatedly opposed Bangirinama's arrest for security reasons.