Ivory Coast: still many gray areas after the attack on Kafolo

Text by: RFI Follow

On Thursday, a group of armed men targeted the Kafolo post, on the border with Burkina Faso, killing a dozen Ivorian soldiers. An action that has still not been claimed. 

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With our correspondent in Abidjan , Pierre Pinto

In Kafolo,  no one returned to the field this Friday morning. No activity has resumed, the inhabitants are still terrorized, testifies the village chief Bamba Tiémogo. "  Last night, no one here slept for fear it would start again." But luckily it didn't resume,  ”he confides to RFI. “  We don't know these attackers, we don't know where they come from. Are they far, not far? We don't know  , ”adds the village chief.

Since yesterday, the locality and its surroundings have been criss-crossed by military reinforcements. Reinforcements also on the Burkina side. A helicopter flew over this forest area where it is easy to hide.

The provisional official assessment is of ten dead on the Ivorian side, but a witness speaks of twelve killed including eleven gendarmes. An assailant also died. The six injured were repatriated Thursday afternoon to Abidjan. And in the end, none disappeared: the one who was missing was found safe and sound.

No claim

In May, the Ivorian and Burkinabe armies launched a joint anti-jihadist operation called "Comoé". A fortnight ago, the two armies declared that they had destroyed a jihadist base, killed eight fighters and captured forty. This attack could therefore be the response to the military operation last month.

"  It is a terrorist attack. We are currently carrying out investigations to clarify the nature and origin of this attack,  "said Ivorian Defense Minister Hamed Bakayoko on Thursday. “  Retaliation or not, the only answer is to face it. You will see in the coming days, the answer will be commensurate with this attack,  "he added.

For the moment, the attack has not been claimed, but for almost two years jihadists have been reported in this border area. The eyes turn in particular towards a cell linked to the katiba Macina of the Malian Amadou Koufa . As a reminder, it was to this katiba that had been attributed plans to foiled attacks in 2019 against a hotel and a military camp in Abidjan.

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• Ivory Coast
• Burkina Faso
• Terrorism
• Defense

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