Deadly Islamist Attack in Burkina Faso Claims 100 Lives

Over the weekend, jihadis associated with al-Qaida attacked a community in central Burkina Faso, killing at least 100 civilians and troops.

Regional experts have characterized the attack as one of the worst this year in the conflict-torn country of West Africa, based on the video evidence that is now available.

Wassim Nasr, a Sahel specialist and senior research fellow at the Soufan Center security think tank, said that on Saturday, fighters with the al-Qaida-linked JNIM group invaded the area and opened fire on the villagers in the Barsalogho commune, which is 80 kilometers (50 miles) from the capital city. The villagers were assisting security forces in digging trenches to protect security outposts and villages.

Al-Qaida took credit for the attack on Sunday, claiming in a statement that it had taken “total control over a militia position” in Barsalogho, Kaya, a strategically important town where security forces have used to repel jihadis who have attempted in the past to encircle Ouagadougou, the country’s capital.

According to Nasr, videos of the attack showed at least 100 dead. The Associated Press watched videos that seemed to be from the scene, showing dead stacked next to the trenches and shovels in the middle of gunfire, but they were unable to independently confirm the number.

In a national television broadcast on Sunday, Mahamadou Sana, Burkina Faso’s minister of security, stated that the government used both ground and aerial support to counter the attack.

The minister added that military and civilians were among the dead, but she could not provide a specific figure.

“We are not going to accept such barbarity on the territory,” Sana stated. He declared that authorities are dedicated to preserving lives and that the government has ordered medical and humanitarian relief to all those impacted.

About half of Burkina Faso is outside of government control as the country has been ravaged by growing jihadi attacks encircling the capital. The jihadis linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State group have killed thousands and displaced more than 2 million people in one of the world’s most neglected crises.

The violence contributed to two coups in 2022. Still, the military junta that promised to end the attacks has struggled to do so, even after seeking new security partnerships with Russia and other junta-led, conflict-hit countries in Africa’s Sahel region.

Burkina Faso’s junta leader Capt. Ibrahim Traore – who activists say was drafting critics to join the army as punishment – has also been requesting civilians to assist the military in security efforts. A civilian task force, Volunteers for the Defence of the Fatherland (VDP), is already working closely with the military.

Authorities have asked citizens to assist in digging various trenches in regions that the jihadis are attempting to take control of, including the one being dug in the commune of Barsalogho.

The absence of effective air cover and intelligence by security forces is contributing to the growing success of the jihadis. According to Nasr, they are also active due to the incompetent management of territories bordering Mali and Niger, two nations that are likewise experiencing violent attacks.

More people are joining the jihadis as a result of human rights violations carried out by the nation’s security services and VDP, he claimed.