In a confronational remark on Wednesday, Burundi President Pierre Nkurunziza reportedly threatened to fight any peacekeepers imposed by the African Union (AU) on his country.

The comment comes after the African Union had earlier said it was ready to deploy peacekeepers in the backdrop of violence and political turmoil in the country.

This is the first time the African bloc is invoking powers to intervene in the internal affairs of a member nation without its consent, said a Reuters report.

"Everyone has to respect Burundi's borders," said the president, responding to the AU plan of sending 5,000 peacekeepers to protect the civilians in the violence-hit central African nation.

"In case they violate those principles, they will have attacked the country, and every Burundian will stand up and fight against them. The country will have been attacked and it will respond," the report quoted Nkurunziza as saying on state radio.

Earlier, some government officials in the country had said the interference of AU peacekeepers would violate the sovereignty of the country.

The political crisis was triggered by Nkurunziza's bid for a third term in April when the belligerent rival parties staged protests, saying he was "violating constitutional term limits", the report said.

However, he took part in the election campaign with the backing of a court order and was re-elected in July. The crisis mounted following a failed coup by the Opposition and over 200,000 people have reportedly fled the country ever since.

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