Burkina Faso: Islamic State claims responsibility for Arbinda attack

Jihadists in the West African Province of the Islamic State (PAOEI) claimed in a press release, Friday, December 27, the attack perpetrated during the night of Tuesday to Wednesday against a military post located in the north from Burkina Faso, which claimed the lives of seven soldiers.

>> Read also: Burkina Faso: several dozen civilians killed in an attack in the north

Wassim Nasr, journalist at France 24 and specialist in jihadist movements, explains that "in this press release, the Islamic State group speaks of a report of seven dead soldiers and describes its operating mode: a kamikhaze attack, namely a car bomb which then allowed to attack the base directly. "

"They take advantage of the porosity of the 3 borders"

"The north of Burkina Faso had been in the sights of the Islamic State group for a while. These jihadists are taking advantage of a catastrophic situation for the locals (...) of economic and political problems but above all of the porosity of this cross-border area between Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso, "added the specialist.

#BurkinaFaso the #EI under “West Africa province” claims the attack on #Arbinda #Soum last Tuesday “a suicide bomber led the way with his car bomb” pic.twitter.com/uHP6U9ZV7w

Thirty-five civilians, including 31 women, and seven soldiers were killed during the attack, as well as "80 terrorists", according to Burkinabè authorities. A balance sheet that is more "war communication than factual", according to Wassim Nasr.

Later, on the night of Tuesday 24 to Wednesday 25 December, a dozen Burkinabè soldiers were also killed in a second attack on a military detachment in Hallalé, in the same region, AFP reported on Wednesday safe sources.

Burkina Faso has been the scene of regular jihadist attacks since the first quarter of 2015, like its Sahelian neighbors. The North and East are particularly affected and Ouagadougou, the capital, has been hit three times.

With Reuters and AFP

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