Amnesty International has appealed to regional Heads of State or their representatives meeting on 20 July 2003 in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, to inject a renewed momentum to ending the armed conflict in Burundi and to give protection of human rights priority on their agenda. "The gap between paper agreements and the situation of Burundian civilians in constant fear for their lives, property and security grows ever larger," said Amnesty International.

Renewed fighting between rebels and government forces in Burundi erupted in the capital Bujumbura this week, leaving streets littered with bodies and doubts about a peace process intended to end almost 10 years of civil war.
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Thousands of civilians were displaced when heavy fighting erupted again on Tuesday between the army and fighters loyal to Agathon Rwasa's faction of the Forces nationales de liberation (FNL) in the southeastern part of the Burundian capital, Bujumbura.

Four people were killed and seven others injured on Wednesday when rebels shelled the Burundian capital, Bujumbura, for the third consecutive day.

An estimated 44,000 internally displaced people have returned to their homes in Kayanza Province, northern Burundi, as fighting between government forces and rebels has subsided, an official of the UN World Food Programme (WFP) told IRIN last Friday.