Authorities in Burkina Faso said about 60 civilians were killed last Friday in the north of the country near the Mali border by people wearing the uniform of the Burkinabe armed forces.
Lamine Kabore, the chief prosecutor of the Supreme Court in the town of Wahiguia, announced an investigation after the attack on the village of Karma in Yatenga province in the border areas near Mali, an area overrun by armed groups described as linked to jihadist groups that have carried out repeated attacks for years.
"The wounded have been taken to our health facilities, where they are currently undergoing treatment," Kabore said, adding that the gunmen had "seized" various quantities of goods.
A number of residents, citing survivors, reported that more than 100 gunmen attacked the village of Karma on motorcycles and pickup trucks.
Dozens of men and youths were killed by gunmen wearing army uniforms, they said.
Frequent attacks
The latest attack follows another attack by gunmen – suspected fighters of armed groups described as jihadists – that killed 34 volunteers and 6 soldiers near the village of Orima, about 15 kilometres from Wahigoya.
Burkina Faso's military junta then announced a "general mobilisation" to give the state "all necessary means" to combat attacks usually blamed on militants linked to al-Qaeda and Islamic State.
The government had previously announced a plan to recruit an additional 5,<> troops to fight armed groups.
Burkina Faso's interim president, Captain Ibrahim Traoré, has announced that his goal is to regain 40 percent of the country's territory controlled by armed groups.
The violence in the world's poorest country has killed more than 10,<> people and displaced nearly <> million, according to NGOs.