New major jihadist attack in Burkina Faso. On Saturday, assailants attacked the village of Silgadji, in the province of Soum (North) and killed many people. "There was an attack in the village of Silgadji. The toll is difficult to establish because these are figures put forward by people who fled the locality. We are talking about 10 to 30 dead," a security source said on Tuesday 28 January. , on condition of anonymity.

"The security elements are trying to get to the scene, but access to the village has probably been trapped with artisanal mines, so we must proceed with caution," said the source.

Residents of Silgadji fled their commune and arrived in Bourzanga on Sunday, says a witness: "According to the residents who arrived, the attacks took place since Saturday. The terrorists surrounded the populations at the village market, before they separate into two groups. The men were executed and the women ordered to leave the village, "this Bourzanga resident told AFP.

"The terrorists have not left"

"According to them, the terrorists have not left. The armed groups are still in the vicinity of Silgadji and Naguèré. Yesterday Monday, they were still in Silgadji and its surroundings where they vandalized telephone installations", continues this local source.

"It is difficult to give a figure but there are close to fifty deaths according to testimony," he added.

Burkina Faso, bordering Mali and Niger, is facing jihadist attacks that have left nearly 800 dead and nearly 600,000 displaced or refugees since 2015.

Under-equipped and poorly trained, the Burkinabè police do not succeed in stopping the spiral of violence despite the help of foreign forces, notably from France, present with 4,500 men in the context of the Barkhane antijihadste operation in the Sahel.

According to the UN, jihadist attacks in Mali, Niger and Burkina killed 4,000 in 2019.

With AFP

The France 24 week summary invites you to come back to the news that marked the week

I subscribe

Download the app

google-play-badge_FR