The girls are accused of defacing photographs of Nkurunziza in five textbooks belonging to their school, but teachers pointed out that the books are shared among all the pupils as there are not enough for everyone to have their own.
A judicial source, who called the case"very sensitive" and said it was overseen directly by the Attorney General, reported that the girls arrived at the prison on Wednesday afternoon.
It was not clear when they might face trial, but the father of one of the girls said they were already"too scared to eat", according to Lewis Mudge, from Human Rights Watch . In 2016, several schoolchildren were handed prison sentences for similar scribbles on the president's face, and hundreds of pupils expelled, sparking an international outcry.
Burundi has been in turmoil since Nkurunziza in April 2015 sought a fiercely-contested third term in office.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Burundi schoolgirls jailed for doodling on president Nkurunziza’s photoIt was not clear when they might face trial, but the father of one of the girls said they were already 'too scared to eat'.
Read more »
WATCH | Moving tribute to three schoolgirls killed in taxi accident'These three beautiful souls, no one deserves it. They were taken too young, they were so young.'
Read more »
WATCH: Karoo lion ‘in jail’ after his famous escapeThe so-far unnamed lion has broken Sylvester's record for the amount of time he evaded capture.
Read more »
Disgraced PE cop Alicia Beeming jailed for protecting ‘gangster lover’ | IOL NewsDetective Alicia Beeming has been handed a four-year prison term for keeping mum about the whereabouts of a notorious gangster she was secretly dating
Read more »
King of the Karoo: Mufasa leaves jail and returns to the wildA lion named Mufasa which escaped from the Karoo National Park just outside Beaufort West has been found in the Northern Cape. After a stint in jail cells, he has been returned to his natural habitat.
Read more »
Cape Town cash-in-transit robbers to serve 4 years in jailTwo men convicted on charges related to a cash-in-transit in Parow, Cape Town, have been sentenced to four years in prison.
Read more »
Singaporean couple jailed for 'worst of its kind' maid abuse | IOL NewsThe married couple -- who were sentenced two years ago over the abuse of another maid -- beat and kicked their helper and made her clean the house in her underwear.
Read more »
Diplomatic spat looms between Iran and Kenya over jailing of Iranians | IOL NewsTehran has recalled its ambassador to Nairobi following a Kenyan court decision to uphold a jail term for two Iranians convicted of planning bomb attacks.
Read more »
Iran recalls ambassador to Kenya over jailing of IraniansTwo men were arrested in June 2012 and convicted a year later of planning bomb attacks and possessing military-grade explosives.
Read more »
We’ll know in June if Vicky Momberg is going to jailConvicted racist Vicky Momberg appeared at the High Court in Johannesburg in a bid to appeal her two-year sentence for racially abusing a police officer. The matter was postponed to 11 June 2019.
Read more »