The head of Burkina Faso's armed forces has
taken power after mass demonstrations forced
President Blaise Compaore to resign. There
have been days of violent protests against the
leader's 27-year rule.
General Honore Traore proclaimed himself the
new president of Burkina Faso on Friday, just
hours after President Blaise Compaore said he
was stepping down to make way for elections.
"In line with constitutional measures, and
given the power vacuum...I have decided that
I will assume from this day the responsibility
of the head of state," Traore told a news
conference.
The army chief said he planned to have
"consultations with all parties in the country so
as to start the process of returning to the
constitutional order" and restoring political
stability.
The resignation of former President Compaore
followed an escalation in violent protests in the
capital Ouagadougou this week, with
demonstrators demanding an immediate end
to his 27-year reign.
In a statement read on local radio and
television, 63-year-old Compaore said he was
leaving power to allow for "a free and
transparent election in 90 days."
Local media later reported that a heavily
armed convoy, believed to be carrying the
former leader, had been seen traveling south
towards the town of Po near the border with
Ghana.
Hundreds of thousands of people joined
marches this week against Compaore's plans
to amend the constitution - a bid to extend his
term in office, instead of sticking to a pledge to
step down next year. At the height of the
unrest, demonstrators on Thursday stormed
the parliament building in the capital and set
fire to the main chamber.
Calls for swift elections.
According to the West African nation's
constitution, the head of the National
Assembly should take office if the president
steps down. But army head Traore dissolved
the parliament on Thursday, before imposing
martial law to restore order overnight.
A delegation from the African Union, the United
Nations and Regional West African bloc
ECOWAS was due to travel to Burkina Faso on
Friday to hold talks on the situation with
different political parties.
French President Francois Hollande called for
"calm and restraint" in the former French
colony, and urged for quick democratic
elections to be held.
"France recalls its support for the constitution
and thus for early, democratic elections," a
statement from Hollande's office said.
Land-locked Burkina Faso gained
independence in 1960 and is currently one of
the world's poorest nations. Compaore, one of
Africa's longest-serving leaders, had ruled the
country since 1987, when he seized power in a
coup.
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