THE Tanzanian army has shut the border with Burundi, turning back 17,000 Rwandan Hutu refugees. Mr Seamus Dunne, head of the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) at Tanzania's Ngara camp, said yesterday the border had been shut after more than 14,000 Rwandan Hutus crossed into Tanzania last week.
Those who crossed said they were fleeing attacks by Burundi's Tutsi dominated army, which raided their camp at Mugano in the north east.
The Rwandans first fled their homeland in 1994 after a Hutu genocide campaign against the Tutsi minority and the victory of a Tutsi led rebel army over the hard line Hutu regime.
The Tanzanian government has frequently complained about the heavy pressure the 700,000 Rwandan refugees were already exerting on its impoverished economy.