20 Dead In Suspected Jihadist Attacks In Burkina Faso

Twenty civilians, including women and children, were killed between Monday and Wednesday in two attacks by suspected jihadists in central-eastern Burkina Faso, security and local sources told AFP on Friday.

On Wednesday, "armed groups carried out an incursion into Bilguimdouré," a village in the commune of Sangha in the province of Koulpélogo (centre-east), bordering Ghana and Togo, "causing a dozen deaths," a local official told AFP.

"Another terrorist incursion into the neighbouring village of Kaongo had resulted in the death of at least eleven people, including women and children," he continued.

According to the same source, "houses and shops were set on fire by the attackers, who also took away livestock" during these two raids.

Security sources acknowledged the attacks, noting that "security operations are underway in the region" but providing no details on the outcomes of the invasions.

Nationals from the commune of Sangha confirmed the two attacks, telling AFP that "desperate populations are trying to flee their localities, fearing new attacks."

According to these inhabitants, armed organizations summoned the residents of Soudougui, another town in the area, to "clear several villages under threat of retaliation in the coming days."

Despite anti-jihadist operations carried out by the army and its civilian allies, the province of Koulpélogo, where a curfew has been in effect for several months, is the target of periodic attacks.

At least 24 persons were killed in two attacks by suspected jihadists in the Center-East region, near the borders of Ghana and Togo, in mid-April, including 20 Volunteers for the Defense of the Homeland (VDP), civilian army auxiliaries.

Burkina Faso, the site of two military coups in 2022, has been caught in a cycle of Islamic violence that began in Mali and Niger a few years ago and has moved beyond their boundaries since 2015.

According to non-governmental organizations, the clash has killed over 10,000 civilians and troops and displaced over two million people over the last seven years.