Burkina Faso: At least 11 civilians killed in a jihadist att…

Led by the military junta of Captain Ibrahim Traoré, who came to power in September 2022, Burkina Faso has been facing deadly offensives by groups affiliated with Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State for a decade across large parts of its territory, particularly in its northern half.

The junta recruited thousands of “volunteers for the defense of the homeland” (VDP), civilian auxiliaries to support the army.

“Yesterday (Wednesday), at around 3:00 PM (local and GMT), heavily armed terrorists on motorcycles carried out an attack in the town of Bagaré,” in the province of Passoré, in the North region, a local resident told AFP.

“The shooting lasted for more than an hour and the terrorists set fire to several dozen shops, vehicles and motorcycles,” the source added.

The attack was claimed on Wednesday by the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM, affiliated with Al-Qaeda), which said it had “taken control of a military post belonging to Burkinabe militias”, without further details.

“The damage is significant, but the loss of life among the VDP, who were directly targeted by the attackers, is particularly regrettable,” said another resident, mentioning a “provisional death toll of 11.”

“The VDP post was indeed targeted by the jihadists but the response routed the enemy,” a security source in the region said, without further details.

According to one of the residents, before Wednesday’s attack, all the inhabitants of the surrounding villages had been driven out by the jihadists and found refuge in Bagaré, which serves as a buffer between Ouagadougou and the North.

“We want reinforcements to secure the city, otherwise we will be evicted (driven out) and we will all end up in Yako (provincial capital) or Ouagadougou,” he urged.

On Tuesday, the Burkinabe Ministry of Security announced the launch of Operation “WIBGA-2” (“Sparrowhawk-2” in the local language), which aims to strengthen security throughout the territory, following the unprecedented coordinated attacks in its ally and neighbor Mali last weekend.

Auteur: AFP
Publié le: Jeudi 30 Avril 2026