Army officer takes charge in Burkina Faso, ousting general | Reuters.
(Reuters) – An officer in Burkina Faso’s presidential guard seized power on Saturday promising to lead the West African country to elections after the resignation of longtime President Blaise Compaore, in an apparent putsch against the military chief of staff.
Compaore stepped down on Friday after two days of mass protests against his attempts to change the constitution to extend his 27-year rule. At least three people were killed after protesters stormed the parliament building and set it on fire.
Army chief of staff General Honore Traore, a Compaore loyalist, had quickly announced on Friday he would take over the presidency on a transitional basis, but this was rejected by the demonstrators and a number of junior officers.
After reports of heavy gunfire near the presidential palace early on Saturday, Lieutenant Colonel Issaac Zida, the operational commander of the elite presidential guard, announced on radio that he was taking power.
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