{"id":7318,"date":"2026-06-06T20:14:06","date_gmt":"2026-06-06T20:14:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kingumurundifreedom.org\/en\/?p=7318"},"modified":"2026-06-06T20:55:29","modified_gmt":"2026-06-06T20:55:29","slug":"alert-presumed-enforced-disappearance-of-a-soldier-growing-concern-among-his-relatives","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kingumurundifreedom.org\/en\/alert-presumed-enforced-disappearance-of-a-soldier-growing-concern-among-his-relatives\/","title":{"rendered":"ALERT \u2013 Presumed enforced disappearance of a Soldier: Growing concern among his relatives"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
King Umurundi Freedom Organization has been informed of the disappearance of BIZIMANA G\u00e9rard, a Burundian soldier who has been missing since Friday, 5 June 2026. Since his disappearance, concern has continued to grow among his relatives, colleagues, and acquaintances, who have received no information regarding his whereabouts.<\/strong><\/span><\/h6>

Identification of the Missing Person<\/strong><\/h4>

The missing soldier is BIZIMANA G\u00e9rard, commonly known by the nickname “Muhinga” and also identified by some as Aim\u00e9. His official identity is BIZIMANA G\u00e9rard.<\/p>

He is 34 years old and holds the rank of Corporal in the Burundian military. He joined the National Defence Forces in 2015. He originates from Gahondo Hill, Ndava Commune, Mwaro Province (under the former administrative division) and is currently assigned to Gitega Province. He normally resides in Busoro Quarter, Kanyosha Zone, Mugere Commune, Bujumbura Province.<\/p>

As part of his duties, G\u00e9rard serves within the military intelligence service (G2). He is assigned to the Para Battalion based in Kinanira, where he usually spends his nights while on duty.<\/p>

Circumstances of His Disappearance<\/strong><\/h4>

According to information collected by our organization, on Friday, 5 June 2026, at approximately 1:00 p.m., BIZIMANA G\u00e9rard was at a bar located in Musaga, near the New Force fuel station. The establishment is commonly known as “Chez Lewis,” after its owner, NIYONGABO Lewis, a former Member of Parliament.<\/p>

At the time of the incident, he was sharing a meal with ISHIMWE Cedrick, a member of the Imbonerakure active in the Musaga area. Several testimonies indicate that the two men were close associates. Local sources have also linked them to various abuses committed against civilians, allegedly in collaboration with another Imbonerakure member known as R\u00e9gis. In December 2025, our organization had already issued an alert regarding allegations of misconduct and abuses attributed to them against residents of Musaga. Read here: Musaga: Motorcyclists Denounce Alleged Arrests and Extortion Involving Imbonerakure Members and Security Agents \u2013 KUF-ASBL<\/a><\/p>

According to our sources, while the two men were having lunch at around 1:00 p.m., a white double-cabin pickup truck with tinted windows arrived at the scene. A man in civilian clothing carrying a pistol stepped out of the vehicle and positioned himself near where the soldier was seated.<\/p>

After waiting for him to finish his meal, the man reportedly attempted to apprehend him. BIZIMANA G\u00e9rard is said to have asked for the reasons behind the intervention and appeared to resist the arrest.<\/p>

At that moment, two uniformed soldiers exited the vehicle, rushed toward him, restrained him, and forcibly placed him inside the pickup truck. Witnesses reported that he was seated between the two soldiers in the back of the vehicle, which then sped away.<\/p>

Witnesses further stated that another individual remained seated in the front passenger seat throughout the operation and never exited the vehicle.<\/p>

Concerns About His Whereabouts<\/strong><\/h4>

At the time of writing, no reliable information is available regarding where BIZIMANA G\u00e9rard was taken or what his current condition may be. The reasons for his apprehension remain unknown.<\/p>

Since his presumed arrest, all of his mobile phones have been unreachable. This situation has generated growing concern among his relatives, friends, and colleagues, who remain without any information regarding his fate.<\/p>

His relatives and associates are calling on the competent authorities to clarify the circumstances of this case, disclose his whereabouts, clarify his legal status, and guarantee his safety and fundamental rights.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t

SHARE THIS TO RAISE AWARENESS<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/path><\/svg>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/path><\/svg>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/path><\/svg>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/path><\/svg>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/path><\/svg>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/path><\/svg>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/path><\/svg>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/path><\/svg>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

King Umurundi Freedom Organization has been informed of the disappearance of BIZIMANA G\u00e9rard, a Burundian soldier who has been missing since Friday, 5 June 2026. Since his disappearance, concern has continued to grow among his relatives, colleagues, and acquaintances, who have received no information regarding his whereabouts. Identification of the Missing Person The missing soldier […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7319,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,17,8],"tags":[310,304,100,311],"class_list":["post-7318","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-alerts","category-enforced-disappearance-news","category-news","tag-bizimana-gerard","tag-enforced-disappearance","tag-mwaro","tag-soldier"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kingumurundifreedom.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7318","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kingumurundifreedom.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kingumurundifreedom.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kingumurundifreedom.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kingumurundifreedom.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7318"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/kingumurundifreedom.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7318\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7337,"href":"https:\/\/kingumurundifreedom.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7318\/revisions\/7337"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kingumurundifreedom.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7319"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kingumurundifreedom.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7318"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kingumurundifreedom.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7318"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kingumurundifreedom.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7318"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}