Burkina Faso president declares state of emergency

Burkina Faso's President Blaise Compaore has imposed a state of emergency to end violent protests against his 27-year rule.

The government has also been dissolved, a statement signed by Mr Compaore said.

Protests to demand his resignation are continuing in the capital, Ouagadougou.

Angry crowds had earlier set fire to parliament and other government buildings, forcing MPs to abandon a vote aimed at allowing Mr Compaore to seek re-election in 2015.

Protesters have converged on the main square in Ouagadougou, demanding Mr Compaore's immediate resignation.

'Barbaric escalation'

"October 30 is Burkina Faso's black spring, like the Arab Spring," opposition activist Emile Pargui Pare told AFP news agency.

At least one person has been killed in the protests, says BBC Afrique's Yacouba Ouedraogo in the capital.

However, the main opposition leader, Zephirin Diabre, said dozens of protesters had been killed across the country by the security forces.

"In the face of the barbaric escalation of violence, the political opposition here solemnly, in the name of the people, demands the resignation of the President Blaise Compaore," he said.

The military fired live bullets to try and disperse protesters who had occupied parliament, our correspondent says.

Protesters had also surged towards the presidential palace, and a government helicopter flying overhead fired tear gas at them, Reuters news agency reports.