The death toll due to jihadist violence against civilians and the military in Burkina Faso has risen to around 40 people in just one week.
Since the beginning of the year, more than 150 people have died as a result of the violence in the northern half of the country.
The latest attack targeted the village of Sanakadougou, near the Malian border, when 13 civilians were killed by armed men. According to the inhabitants’ testimonies, the entire village was set on fire, causing the majority of the community to flee.
Deadly violence by jihadists has increased in recent weeks in Burkina. On Wednesday, 15 people were killed in an attack in the north-central region of the country.
The junta led by Captain Ibrahim Traoré claimed that it wanted to regain its “sovereignty” in response to this violence. In order to do so, it asked the French special forces to leave the country and recruited Volunteers for the Defence of the Homeland to defend the territory.