Soldiers of the Burkina Faso Army take part in shooting exercises during a joint operation with the French Army in the Soum region in northern Burkina Faso.
AFP / MICHELE CATTANI
Around 15 civilians were killed Wednesday by suspected jihadists in Burkina Faso, security and local sources told AFP, sparking an exodus of people fearing further bloodshed.
“Terrorists carried out an attack early this morning in Sorgha,” in the eastern province of Gnagna, “which cost the lives of about 15 inhabitants, including women,” a local official told AFP.
The attack was confirmed by a resident and security sources.
Burkina, one of the world’s poorest nations, is struggling with a jihadist insurgency that swept in from Mali in 2015, and has seen more than 10 000 civilians, troops and police killed, according to an NGO count.
At least two million people have been displaced.
Anger within the military at the failure to roll back the insurgency sparked two coups in Burkina Faso last year.
READ | Burkina Faso tops list of world’s most neglected crises – Norwegian Refugee Council
Four attacks by suspected jihadists in Burkina Faso left dead at least 40 volunteer militiamen and 39 regular soldiers last week, the army and security sources said.
The two deadliest clashes took place in the Centre-Nord region on 26 June and early tolls spoke of dozens dead.
The army said on 30 June that 33 members of auxiliary force Volunteers for the Defence of the Fatherland (VDP) died in the fighting at Noaka, in Sanmatenga province.
According to an army statement about 50 “terrorists” also died in the clash and a large amount of military material was recovered.
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