Defense Minister’s Death Stalls Forum

Talks aimed at reviving Burundi’s peace process were postponed after the country’s defense minister and four others were killed in a helicopter crash on their way to the meeting. The helicopter carrying Defense Minister Firmin Sinzoyiheba went down southeast of the capital, Bujumbura, during a thunderstorm. Also killed in the crash were the helicopter’s pilot, Sinzoyiheba’s bodyguard, a military commander and the personal secretary to President Pierre Buyoya. There was no immediate explanation for the crash, which came hours before the scheduled start of four days of talks between the Tutsi-led government and opposition parties that were aimed at ending escalating violence by Hutu rebels.