Death toll in jihadi attack in West African nation rises to 51

By Associated Press

·February 21, 2023

An aerial view shows a camp of internally displaced people in Djibo, Burkina Faso, Thursday May 26, 2022. African leaders have gathered for a summit in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, to address growing humanitarian needs on the continent, which is also facing increased violent extremism, climate change challenges and a run of military coups. Leaders on Friday called for increased mobilization to resolve a humanitarian crisis that has left millions displaced and more than 280 million suffering from malnourishment. (AP Photo/Sam Mednick)

OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso (AP) — The death toll from a jihadi attack on a Burkina Faso army unit in the north of the country last week has risen to 51, military officials said Monday, after 43 new bodies were found.

The military unit was ambushed in the Sahel region’s Oudalan province, between the towns of Deou and Oursi, the Burkinabe military said Monday. Reinforcements have been sent to the area and an unspecified number of wounded have been taken to hospital.

A protestor holds banner written “Damiba thank your for your contribution, now we want I B Traore” during a demonstration after a claimed coup in Ouagadougou on October 2, 2022. – Security forces fired tear gas to disperse angry protesters outside the French embassy in Burkina Faso’s capital on Sunday, as unrest simmered in the impoverished, restive West African nation following the claim of a second coup this year. Burkina Faso’s junta leader agreed to step down on October 2, 2022, two days after military officers announced he had been removed from power, religious and community leaders said. (Photo by AFP) (Photo by -/AFP via Getty Images)

The West African nation has been wracked for seven years by violence linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State group, which has killed thousands, displaced nearly 2 million people and caused a humanitarian crisis.

Successive governments’ failure to effectively address the problem led to two coups last year, with each military leader vowing to stem attacks and secure the country, albeit with little success.

Last week’s attack came while some 400 French special forces soldiers were leaving Burkina Faso, one month after the junta government ordered them out — following in the path of neighboring Mali, which is also ruled by a military dictatorship.

While the number of French troops in Burkina Faso was far smaller than in Mali, their departure adds to growing concerns that Islamic extremists are capitalizing on the political disarray and using it to expand their reach.

Analysts have questioned whether the countries’ militaries are capable of filling the void.

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“The struggle for state forces to avoid deadly attacks, especially such an ambush against convoys, is a major concern since it comes at a time where the state is trying to assert its presence and chase jihadists out from areas they control,” said Rida Lyammouri, senior fellow at the Policy Center for the New South, a Moroccan-based think tank.

“If convoys are repeatedly targeted, recovering territories and providing protection for civilians is going to take a very long time and going to be deadly,” Lyammouri added.

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