African Union, EU and the US condemn Burkina Faso coup

The African Union has condemned the "unconstitutional change of government" in Burkina Faso, a day after the second coup this year in the deeply poor and restive West African country.

"The chairperson calls upon the military to immediately and totally refrain from any acts of violence or threats to the civilian population, civil liberties, human rights," the AU said in a statement on Sunday, calling for the restoration of the constitutional order by July 2024.

Junior military officers toppled a junta leader on Friday, saying he had failed to fight militant attacks in the country.

READ MORE: Burkina Faso army captain ousts military government

AU chief Moussa Faki Mahamat said he was deeply concerned about the resurgence of unconstitutional ousters in Burkina Faso and elsewhere on the continent.

In Burkina Faso's capital, Ouagadougou, an uneasy calm reigned as soldiers in armoured vehicles and pickup trucks guarded the national television centre but traffic slowly resumed on arterial roads.

READ MORE: Shots heard near Burkina Faso presidency, military headquarters

Shops slowly started reopening in the dusty and spread-out city, where pre-dawn gunfire on Friday around the presidential palace culminated in the latest coup, that drew wide condemnation. 

The United States called "for a return to calm and restraint by all actors".

European Union's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell also denounced the coup in Burkina Faso. 

With much of the Sahel region battling a growing insurgency, the violence has prompted a series of coups in Mali, Guinea and Chad since 2020.