Al-Qaeda-linked terrorists killed at least 100 people, including troops and peasants, in the Barsalogho commune in central Burkina Faso in a catastrophic attack spanning over the weekend. One of the bloodiest events this year in the nation of conflict-torn West Africa, the attack happened around 80 kilometers from the city, Ouagadougou.
Video footage examined by regional experts—including senior research fellow Wassim Nasr of the Soufan Center—showcases the terrorists starting the attack while civilians were helping security personnel construct trenches to guard adjacent installations and communities. Overrunning the area, the attackers—identified as members of the Jama’at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin (JNIM)—opened fire on both residents and troops alike.
Al-Qaida asserted responsibility for the Sunday attack, saying in a communique that their fighters had acquired “total control over a militia position” in Barsalogho, a strategically significant town where Burkina Faso’s security forces have been engaged in a protracted struggle against jihadist activity trying to surround the capital.
Scenes captured victims stacked close to the trenches alongside shovels left behind in the turmoil. While the precise casualty count cannot be independently confirmed, the sheer scope of the devastation highlights the increasing threat radical groups present in Burkina Faso represent.
In a national television statement, Burkina Faso’s security minister, Mahamadou Sana, verified the attack and mentioned that the government had reacted with ground and air support. He did not, however, offer a precise death count. Declaring, “We are not going to accept such barbarism on the territory,” Sana said, providing medical and humanitarian aid to the victims and so reinforcing the government’s will to save life.
The attack is typical of the larger security situation engulfassing Burkina Faso, where about half of the nation is outside of government authority. Two coups in 2022 result from the continuous turmoil displacing over 2 million people and claiming hundreds of deaths. Though Capt. Ibrahim Traore’s present military junta claims to restore security, but the situation remains terrible. Although the junta has sought fresh security alliances with Russia and other Sahel region nations, the Islamist danger keeps developing.
The Burkinabé administration has progressively turned to civilian initiatives, including the establishment of a civilian task force to support the military, Volunteers for the Defence of the Fatherland (VDP). Still, the trenches being excavated in Barsalogho and other sites have been inadequate in reversing the flow of jihadist activity.
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The absence of effective air support, inadequate information, and insufficient control over border areas with Mali and Niger—also suffering with violent insurgency—helps to explain the success of the terrorists. Furthermore feeding the cycle of violence are allegedly human rights violations by security personnel and the VDP, which have attracted more people to join jihadist groups.
Effective plans and international support become more critical as Burkina Faso fights these extreme forces to stop more deaths and bring peace back into the area.
