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For the second time in September, an attack on a supply convoy in northern Burkina Faso has left at least 11 soldiers dead. Some 50 civilians are missing, according to a government report on Tuesday night.
At least 11 soldiers died and some 50 civilians disappeared in an attack perpetrated by suspected jihadists in Gaskinde, in the north of the country, against a supply convoy, according to a balance announced on Tuesday, September 27 by the Government.
“A supply convoy bound for the city of Djibo was the subject of a cowardly and barbaric attack. The provisional balance is 11 bodies of soldiers found, 28 wounded,” government spokesman Lionel Bilgo wrote in a statement. “Some 50 civilians are also missing and the search continues,” the text indicates.
However, the death toll could be much higher, as a security source told the AFP news agency that there were “around 60 victims”. “Almost the entire convoy, vehicles and food, was burned,” the source said.
Videos received by AFP from security sources show several trucks burned and destroyed by the side of a road.
“We remain united and in solidarity to liberate our beloved country”
The convoy was ambushed near the town of Gaskinde in Soum province, the army said in a statement late Monday.
“The attack also caused significant material damage,” Bilgo said. “Of course, we are saddened by the current tragedy and the cruel losses we have suffered, but we stand tall, united and in solidarity to liberate our beloved country, Burkina Faso,” he said.
In addition, he recalled the commitment of “the patriotic forces in the fight against terrorism to keep their oath to defend and free our people from the clutches of the obscurantist forces that want to enslave them through blind violence and terror.”
Second attack this month
This is the second attack this month on a supply convoy in the north of the country. In early September, an improvised explosive device exploded between Djibo and Bourzanga, killing at least 35 civilians, including several children.
These convoys, escorted by the Army, bring supplies to the cities of the north, blocked by the jihadist groups, which have recently demolished the bridges of the main highways.
Burkina Faso, where the military seized power in January promising to make the fight against jihadism its priority, faces, like several of its neighbors, violence from armed movements affiliated with Al-Qaeda and the self-styled Islamic State.
Since 2015, recurring attacks have killed thousands of people and displaced some two million citizens.
with AFP
