At least 100 killed and 140 injured in Al Qaeda attack in Burkina Faso

The incident, several security sources confirmed to ‘Radio France Internationale’ (RFI) and France24, took place in the municipality of BarsaloghoWhere the local population was helping the army and members of the so-called Volunteers for the Defense of the Homeland (VDP) to dig a series of trenches to defend themselves from these terrorist organizations that were devastating the country.

at one point, crowd of menArmed According to the story by sources in both media, indiscriminate firing began against the population and security forces, who warned that the estimates of victims were preliminary and that the death toll could reach up to 200.

“They started firing in all directions and panic spread immediately,” said a survivor who spoke on condition of anonymity, adding that members of this community, as well as those in the surrounding area, had on other occasions refused to participate in this type of operation for fear of retaliation from “terrorists and their collaborators.” They move freely throughout the area

The jihadists seized a cache of weapons and even a military ambulance before fleeing. The injured of varying severity have been admitted to a nearby hospital in the city Physique. Hours later, and in a statement collected by France24, JNIM claimed responsibility for the attack in a message accompanied by a video of the massacre, with photos of dozens of dead people, most of them civilians.

The military junta that rules the country has not yet made any official statement about the jihadist attack. Their leader, Captain Ibrahim Traorehas assured on several occasions that the fight against terrorism has become the main priority of his mandate and this is the fundamental reason why the country has decided to stand apart from regional Africans and join the military juntas of Mali and Niger in a closer alliance with Russia, whose Wagner mercenary group is deployed in these countries.