Polling stations in Burundi's controversial parliamentary and local elections officially opened at 6:00 am local time (0400 GMT) Monday, with the climate tense after two months of protests sparked by President Pierre Nkurunziza's bid for a third term.

Some 3.8 million Burundians are eligible to vote in the polls, which the opposition and civil society society groups are boycotting, claiming they will not be free and fair. Burundian authorities had refused to delay the elections despite calls from the international community.