The political situation in Burundi, remains unclear as claims and counter claims were made Wednesday on whether a coup that toppled President Pierre Nkurunziza had succeeded.

The coup plotters led by Major General Godefroid Niyombare, are still struggling to take over the state broadcasting station, as they met a stiff resistance from soldiers loyal to the ‘deposed’ president.

Establishing who is in control of the country remains difficult for now as aides to the supposedly deposed president insisted the coup has been foiled.

“We consider it as a joke, not as a military coup,” presidential aide Willy Niyamitwe told Reuters.

Mr Nkurunziza was office said the coup attempt was unsuccessful, posting a statement on the president’s Twitter and Facebook accounts.

“A group of soldiers mutinied this morning and made a fantasy declaration of a coup d’etat,” said the statement.

“This attempted coup was foiled and these people … are sought by defence and security forces so they are brought to justice.”

Adding more complexity to the puzzles is the unknown whereabouts of Nkurunziza.

The coup was announced on a day that Nkunrunziza was scheduled to be in Tanzania to attend a regional peace meeting to resolve the political logjam in the country.

General Niyombare, who was sacked in February as the intelligence chief, said he had deposed President Pierre Nkurunziza for seeking an unconstitutional third term in office and was forming a transitional government.

A Tanzanian official said Nkurunziza had not attended the talks in Dar es Salaam, and had left to return to Burundi.

But Niyombare said the capital’s airport and all border crossings were closed.

But as cheering crowds streamed onto the streets of Bujumbura, sporadic gunfire was heard in the centre of the capital, and it was not immediately clear how much support Major General Godefroid Niyombare had.

The East African leaders condemned the bid to oust him and called for a return to “constitutional order”.

The U.S. State Department urged “all parties to immediately end the violence and exercise restraint”. But spokesman Jeff Rathke said he could not confirm that a coup had taken place.

Activists say more than 20 people have been killed in weeks of protest against Nkurunziza’s re-election bid, plunging Burundi into its worst crisis since an ethnically fuelled civil war ended in 2005.

The United Nations said more than 70,000 Burundians had fled to neighbouring states in a region with a history of ethnic fighting.

“The region will not accept, nor will the region stand by, if violence does not stop or escalates in Burundi,” Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete said after the summit.