Security forces in Comoros moved to break up roadblocks, apparently erected by opponents of President Azali Assoumani, across Mutsamudu, the capital of Anjouan Island, on Monday according to witnesses who reported gunfire.
The Indian Ocean archipelago has been rocked by instability since July when Assoumani won a referendum on constitutional changes that includes ending the traditional rotation of the presidency between the country’s three main islands after one term.
Assoumani, from Grand Comore island, launched a crackdown on rivals following the poll, which was boycotted by opposition parties and which he won with 92.74 percent support.
No opposition party claimed responsibility for the blockades in Anjouan, in which tree trunks were used to sever main roads, but an AFP correspondent reported that they were thought to have been erected by young people opposed to the president.
