Leaders from Nigeria, Senegal, Niger, Togo, Benin and Ghana were due to arrive in Burkina Faso, underlining the regional concern for a country that was less that a month away from October 11 elections when rebelling soldiers raided the cabinet.
President Michel Kafando said he and his government were back in power on Wednesday a week after a coup, though it was unclear who was really in charge after the rebellion's leader attended a state function.
23 Sep 2015 . Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. Reuters/Joe Penney
Coup leader General Gilbert Diendere awaits the arrival of Niger's President Mahamadou Issoufou at Ouagadougou airport.
"I have returned to work," Kafando told journalists at the foreign ministry.
Around the same time, about 5 km away, coup leader General Gilbert Diendere appeared at the airport, backed by a contingent of his presidential guard, to welcome regional leaders arriving to try to negotiate an end to the crisis.
One by one, Diendere extended a full state welcome to the arriving leaders, greeting them on a red carpet and standing beside them as a military band played their national anthems.
19 Sep 2015 . Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. Reuters/Joe Penney
An anti-coup protester (centre) stands near a burning barricade in Ouagadougou.
Leaders from neighbouring nations were due to meet the coup leaders and transitional authorities to negotiate a final settlement to restore the civilian government.
The head of protocol for the presidency, present at the airport, said an official ceremony during which power would be handed back to the transitional authorities was scheduled for later on Wednesday. Until then, he said, Diendere would remain in charge.
19 Sep 2015 . Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. Reuters/Joe Penney
A child crosses a railway next to a burning barricade in Ouagadougou.
The October election was meant to restore Burkina Faso to democracy. Mass street protests last year toppled longtime ruler Blaise Compaore as he attempted to force through constitutional changes to extend his 27 years in power.
Diendere is the former spy chief and right-hand man of Compaore.
21 Sep 2015 . Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. Reuters/Joe Penney
Anti-coup protesters converge at the residence of the traditional leader Mogho Naaba in Ouagadougou.
Compaore's overthrow had made Burkina Faso a beacon for democratic aspirations in Africa, where veteran rulers in countries from Rwanda to Republic of Congo are seeking to scrap constitutional limits on how long they are permitted to stay in office.