Regional official reports about 170 fatalities in Burkina Faso attacks

Regional prosecutor reports around 170 people killed in attacks on three villages in northern Burkina Faso a week ago. The prosecutor for the northern town of Ouahigouya, Aly Benjamin Coulibaly, stated that the villages of Komsilga, Nodin, and Soroe in Yatenga province were targeted on February 25, resulting in numerous fatalities and injuries. Survivors recounted that women and children were among the victims.

The attacks, separate from incidents at a mosque in Natiaboani and a church in Essakane on the same day, have not been attributed to any specific group. Investigations are ongoing, and authorities have appealed for information from the public.

Burkina Faso has been grappling with armed groups for a decade, with about half of the country outside government control. The violence has led to nearly 20,000 deaths and displaced over two million people. President Ibrahim Traore has emphasized a strong security response to combat the insurgency. Recent attacks, including those on military positions, suggest an attempt by armed groups to assert their presence after facing military pressure.

The military and civilian defense force, Volunteers for the Defence of the Fatherland (VDP), launched operations in response to the coordinated attacks, neutralizing several hundred terrorists. The attacks mark a change in tactics by the armed groups following the destruction of their bases and training camps, as well as efforts to cut off their financing and supply routes. Mosques, imams, and churches have previously been targeted, with Christians also being kidnapped in some instances. In January alone, 439 people were killed in such violence, according to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED).