Burkina Faso President Resigns, Military Seizes Power

Burkina Faso President Roch Kaboré resigned on Monday, four security and political sources told Reuters.

The military issued a statement, saying it had seized power. The statement cited the worsening security situation and Kaboré's alleged inability to unite the nation as reasons for overthrowing him, AFP news agency reports.

Moreover, the army suspended the constitution, dissolved the government and the national assembly, and closed the borders.

The statement was issued in the name of a group not heard of previously, the Patriotic Movement for Safeguard and Restoration or MPSR, its French acronym.

"MPSR, which includes all sections of the army, has decided to end President Kabore's post today," it said.

This comes a day after troops seized barracks, and gunshots were heard in the capital.

On Sunday, heavy gunfire erupted at military camps, a move which the African Union and West African regional bloc ECOWAS have denounced. They described it as an attempted coup in Burkina Faso.

Kaboré's whereabouts are unclear, but the officer affirmed that all those detained were in a secure location.

Earlier, the ruling People's Movement for Progress (PMP) party said that both Kaboré and a government minister had survived an assassination attempt.