Found the bodies of 15 civilians executed in the southwest of the country
31 Jan. (EUROPA PRESS) –
At least twelve members of Burkina Faso’s security forces, including two ‘volunteers’ recruited to reinforce the fight against terrorism, and a civilian were killed on Monday in an attack carried out by unidentified gunmen in the town of Falangoutou, in the region of Burkina Faso. Sahel (north), as confirmed by the authorities of the African country.
The Burkinabe Army has indicated in a statement that “residual elements of armed groups that operated in the area” launched an attack against the town and has highlighted that “gendarmes and volunteers showed that they were anticipating to prevent a massacre of the population and responded courageously to the stroke”.
“Unfortunately, they paid a high price,” he pointed out, before adding that five gendarmes were injured and ten have been reported missing. Likewise, he has stressed that 15 “terrorists” died in the clashes, while he has conveyed his condolences to the relatives of the agents killed in the attack.
For his part, the governor of the Cascades region (southwest) has confirmed the discovery of 15 bodies in the town of Linguekoro after an attack carried out on Sunday by an unidentified armed group. The victims were traveling in two vehicles that were intercepted by the attackers, who freed eight women and one man before executing 15 adult men, according to the Burkinabe news portal Burkina 24.
“On behalf of the government, the Governor of the Cascades region expresses his compassion and solidarity to the bereaved families and invites the population to increase collaboration with the defense and security forces, which remain determined, together with the Volunteers for Defense of the Homeland, to continue the fight until the victory of our people against all their enemies”, has settled.
Burkina Faso, ruled by a military junta since the January 2022 coup against then-president Roch Marc Christian Kaboré, has experienced increased insecurity since 2015. The junta is now headed by Ibrahim Traoré, who starred in September a coup that was considered a “palace coup” against the hitherto leader, Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba.
The attacks, carried out by both the Al Qaeda affiliate and the Islamic State affiliate in the region, have also contributed to an increase in inter-communal violence and have caused self-defense groups to flourish, to which the Burkinabe government has added ‘volunteers ‘. The deterioration of security has caused a wave of internally displaced persons and refugees to other countries in the region.
