国际英语新闻:Gunshots fired as army clear protesters in Burkina Faso capital

OUAGADOUGOU, Nov. 2 (Xinhua) -- Burkina Faso's army fired warning shots and dispersed thousands of protesters from state TV offices in the capital on Sunday as an opposition leader attempted to declare herself the new interim president of the West African country.

Saran Sereme, leader of the Party of Development and Change (PDC), and her supporters briefly took control of the state TV offices before soldiers moved in and cleared them out.

Gunshots were heard and TV signals were cut off in the chaos. There were no reports of injuries.

In a show of force, the army set up barricades and deployed military vehicles along main routes in the capital to prevent access to the state TV offices and the Place de la Natio, the central city square that was the scene of violent protests last week.

The new development came after President Blaise Compaore, who had ruled for 27 years, resigned on Friday and fled to Cote d'Ivoire amid violent protests.

Army chief Honore Nabere Traore declared himself head of state on Friday. But the army on Saturday backed presidential guard Lieutenant Colonel Issaac Zida to lead an interim government.

Dismissing Traore's attempt to assume power, Zida said he had assumed "the responsibilities of head of the transition and of head of state" to ensure the "continuation of the state" and a "smooth democratic transition."

On Sunday, however, demonstrations were staged in the capital as protesters pressed the military to transfer power to civilian rule.

The United States on Saturday called on the military to immediately transfer power to civilian authorities.

"The U.S. condemns the Burkinabe military's attempt to impose its will on the people of Burkina Faso," Jen Psaki, spokeswoman for the State Department, said in a statement.

"We urge civilian leadership to be guided by the spirit of the constitution of Burkina Faso and to move immediately towards free and fair Presidential elections," Psaki said.

The African Union (AU) has also called for a civilian-led transition in Burkina Faso as the Peace and Security Council of the 54-member Pan-African bloc is set to hold a meeting on Monday to consider the situation in the country.

On Thursday, hundreds of thousands of people turned out in the streets of Burkina Faso's capital to prevent members of parliament from voting to amend the Constitution, a move that would have allowed 63-year-old Compaore to compete for another term of presidency.