Solhan attack: Burkina Faso again bereaved by terrorism
Soldiers attend the funeral of the seven members of the security forces who were killed in late August after their vehicle struck a roadside bomb in eastern Burkina Faso.
AFP
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At least 138 civilians were killed by armed men in the night attack on the village of Solhan, in the commune of Sebba, according to security sources.
The country, whose security context has deteriorated in recent months, is in shock and a three-day national mourning has been declared.
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The whole country has been in shock since the announcement of
the attack on the village of Solhan
. National mourning of 72 hours was decreed by the president of Faso. For three days, the flags of all public buildings and representations of Burkina Faso abroad are half mast. Popular celebrations and recreational events are prohibited. The head of state Roch Marc Christian Kaboré described the attack as "
barbaric
" and even speaks of "
tragedy
". The media have changed their program for the occasion, relates our correspondent in Ouagadougou,
Yaya Boudani
.
The attack took place on the night of June 4 to 5, 2021. Armed men entered the village and opened fire on the populations. Several homes and the market were burnt down, according to RFI sources. The toll is heavy, the worst even for six years, and remains provisional: 138 civilian deaths, at least.
It is the first time that the country has suffered an attack of such magnitude.
The head of government writes that the country is deeply wounded in its flesh, following this attack against the civilian populations.
Issa Barry, one of the deputies of the province, does not hide his dismay either: “
There, really, we have tears in our eyes.
It's very, very difficult ... I don't understand.
There, what concerns us is to be able to bury the dead, to mourn ... We are very devastated, but we are Burkinabè, we are a resilient people.
You have seen the national momentum that has emerged around this, the solidarity that quickly manifested itself.
It comforts us, we feel less alone.
The whole nation is crying.
"
Renewed violence against civilians
The attack comes a few weeks after a tour of the Minister of Defense, Chériff Sy, in several military detachments, including that of Sebba.
The minister went there to encourage the armed forces in the fight against terrorism.
On May 17, he was in Sebba, located about ten kilometers from Solhan, in the same province of Yagha.
The images that had been broadcast on television showed students leaving their class, populations going about their business.
Life had resumed in Sebba, and last night's attack comes as a response to this visit by the minister, who then felt that the situation had returned to normal in the region.
After participating in a crisis meeting, Ousseini Tamboura, the Minister of Communication and government spokesman, points out that the injured people were taken care of in the Sebba health center and at the Dori regional health center, for the most serious cases.
However, Ousseni Tamboura believes that this attack should not be linked to the recent visit of the Minister of Defense in this province.
The objective of his visit was to see the devices put in place and to encourage the soldiers on the ground.
The Burkinabè are in a state of shock.
This is the first time that you have had such a level of casualties.
I don't think you can call it anything other than cowardice.
Ousseni Tamboura, spokesperson and Minister of Communication
The International Committee of the Red Cross, which alerted two weeks ago to the resurgence of
violence targeting civilians in Burkina Faso
, has sent material support to the regional directorate of Dori in the north of the country. A truck left the Burkinabè capital on Saturday evening with treatment for war injuries in particular. According to the organization, twenty wounded would have arrived yesterday in Dori, and 35 in Sebba. But the dangers on the roads prevent people from having access to healthcare, explains Laurent Saugy, head of the ICRC delegation in Burkina Faso:
It is a call to all parties to the conflict to remember the basic rules which are imbued with humanity that an injured person, whoever they are, has a right to be treated.
This is why the ICRC has just deployed, a few minutes ago, significant support to the health authorities who are doing remarkable work in circumstances like these.
Laurent Saugy
The UN Secretary General reacted through a statement from his spokesperson, saying he was "
outraged by the assassination early this morning of more than a hundred civilians, including seven children, during a attack perpetrated by unidentified assailants against a village in Yagha province, in the Sahel region of Burkina Faso
”.
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Burkina Faso
Terrorism
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