Diyar Güldoğan
18 September 2015•Update: 18 September 2015
ANKARA
Turkish Foreign Ministry rejected a coup in Burkina Faso, where members of the presidential guard ousted the interim government Thursday.
"We reject the intervention on politics via undemocratic methods," the ministry said in a statement late Thursday.
Burkina Faso’s presidential guard on Thursday morning announced the dissolution of the country’s transitional government after arresting interim President Michel Kafando and Prime Minister Isaac Zida Wednesday evening at a military base.
Coup leader Gilbert Diendere was named the country's new leader until new elections, state-owned media reported Thursday.
"We believe that the coup, which impedes the development of democracy in Burkina Faso, will endanger the peace process and make the situation in the country much more fragile," the Turkish Foreign Ministry’s statement said.
Turkey also called on all sides to refrain from violence.
Balai Citoyen, a prominent civil society group, said on its Facebook page that more than a dozen people had been killed by members of the presidential guard in protests following the coup.
On Friday, Turkish Foreign Ministry also cautioned Turkish citizens against traveling to Burkina Faso.
