Gunfire erupted across Burkina Faso's capital on Saturday and a fire erupted at the French embassy, ​​as self-proclaimed leader Ibrahim Traore accused President Paul Henri Damiba of launching a counterattack after his ouster two days ago.

The standoff points to a deep division within the military and a troubling new chapter in Burkina Faso, where the escalation of attacks by Islamist armed movements has eroded confidence in the authorities and displaced nearly two million people.

The Chief of Staff of Burkina Faso's army called on the warring factions to stop hostilities and continue talks, describing what is happening as an "internal crisis within the national armed forces".

Earlier, the leader of the military coup, Major Ibrahim Traore, announced the dissolution of the government and the closure of the borders, noting that Paul had taken refuge in a French base and was planning a counterattack.

He and his comrades justified the overthrow of the president on the grounds of his failure to deal with the armed Islamist movements, which is the same reason Damiba provided as a justification for the overthrow of former president Rosh Kabori several months ago.


France at the center of the crisis

In parallel with the coup's announcement that Damiba had sought refuge in a French army base, hundreds of supporters of Traore's takeover of power staged a protest in front of the French embassy on Saturday, and anti-Paris demonstrators gathered and threw stones at the French Cultural Center in the southern town of Bobo Dioulasso.

A fire broke out in the early hours of Saturday evening in the French embassy, ​​and several gunshots were heard.

And the German news agency reported that a small group of citizens took to the streets near the French base yesterday, asking its soldiers to leave the country, and confirmed their support for the coup leader Traoré, noting also that scattered Russian flags appeared in pictures taken by the media.

The same agency reported that calls for a solidarity demonstration for Traore were shared on social media under the slogan "Against Damiba and France".

Meanwhile, the French Foreign Ministry condemned what it called the violence that occurred against its diplomatic missions "in the strongest terms."

This ministry said in a statement that al-Qaeda had never hosted Damiba, who seized power in a coup on January 24.

The ousted president also denied that he was at the base, saying that these reports were a deliberate manipulation of public opinion.

A call to avoid fratricide

The ousted president said - in his first statement about the crisis, which he posted on the official page of the Presidency of the Republic on Facebook - that he calls on Captain Traore and his companions to "return to their senses to avoid a fratricidal war that Burkina Faso does not need."

Damiba came to power in January in a coup that ousted former President Roch Marc Christian Kabore, who was discredited by the escalating violence of armed groups.

And the new leader of the military council (Captain Traoré) is the commander of the Kaya Artillery Regiment in the north of the country affected by jihadist attacks.

This West African country and the former French protectorate has become a hotbed of violence carried out by groups linked to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State that began in neighboring Mali in 2012 and spread to other sub-Saharan countries.

Traore justified his and his comrades' overthrow of President Damiba by his failure to deal with the armed movements (Anatolia)

International condemnation

The US State Department and United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres denounced the ongoing unrest two days ago in Burkina Faso.

On the other hand, Washington and the European and African Unions condemned this change of authority, as did several other international bodies.

The US State Department said that Washington condemns the military overthrow of the government in Burkina Faso.

The spokesman for the UN Secretary-General said in a statement that he strongly condemns any attempt to seize power by force of arms and calls on all parties to "refrain from violence and seek dialogue."

For its part, the African Union said in a statement that its president "calls on the (burkini) army to immediately and completely refrain from any acts of violence or threats to the population, civil liberties and human rights, calling for the restoration of constitutional order by July 2024.

African Union President Moussa Faki has expressed his deep concern - about the return of unconstitutional coups - whether in Burkina Faso or other countries on the continent.

For its part, the European Union warned that this coup jeopardizes the efforts made to restore constitutional order by July 1, 2024, and called on the new authorities to respect previous agreements.

"The European Union regrets the deterioration of the security and humanitarian situation in (these) countries," EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said in a statement.