Mass Islamic extremists attack Burkina Faso army in east of country, killing 33 soldiers
Posted Date – Fri, 4/28/23 at 11:59pm
Mass Islamic extremists attack Burkina Faso army in east of country, killing 33 soldiers
Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso): Thirty-three soldiers were killed and a dozen others wounded in an attack by Islamic extremists in the east of the country, the military said on Friday.
The attack took place in the town of Vagaru in Gourma province on Thursday, according to a military statement.
“During particularly intense fighting, the soldiers of this unit showed extraordinary determination in the face of outnumbered enemies,” the statement said, adding that 40 other jihadists were also killed.
Militants linked to al Qaeda and the Islamic State group have waged a violent seven-year insurgency in Burkina Faso. The violence has killed thousands and displaced some 2 million people.
It has also divided a once-peaceful country and fueled frustrations that led to two coups last year. The new junta leader, Captain Ibrahim Traore, has pledged to defend the country. But some civilians say they also fear Burkina Faso’s security forces, which they accuse of extrajudicial killings and the disappearance of countless people accused of supporting the militants.
Meanwhile, attacks are intensifying and spreading as jihadists blockade villages, preventing freedom of movement for hundreds of thousands of people.
Gunmen killed at least 40 members of Burkina Faso’s security forces in the northern region earlier this month
Dozens of people were also wounded in part of the country.
Local residents have accused security forces of brutally killing civilians in the northern region. The United Nations has called for a thorough and independent investigation into what it calls the “horrific killing of civilians”.
