Burkina Faso: Attack on police detachment kills dozens

Burkina Faso’s security crisis has seemingly deteriorated further after dozens were killed in an attack on a police detachment in the Yamba region, according to RFI and agencies on March 9th.

The attack occurred on March 6th and targeted officers from the GUMI (Mobile Intervention Unit Group) stationed in Yamba, which is situated roughly 20 kilometres from the eastern Fada N’Gourma region.

At least 30 people are believed to be dead, although no official death toll has been released; the military base was looted and set ablaze after the ambush.

While it is unclear if a terrorist group was responsible for the attack, the al-Qaeda affiliated Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM) have a presence in the region.

JNIM are particularly active in Fada N’Gourma, which borders Niger; in January, JNIM fighters sought to impose a blockade around a livestock market in the region, which was successful as it prevented trade and damaged the local economy.

Similarly, JNIM claimed responsibility for a January 17th and 18th attack on a police detachment in Balga, which killed at least 11 police officers.

It was reported on February 19th that at least 60 people were killed in a suspected jihadist attack targeting the Water and Forestry Combat Units (UCEF) base in Fada N’Gourma.

Burkina Faso has struggled to contain the growing threat posed by jihadist militants in recent years, despite the military junta, led by Captain Ibrahim Traoré, vowing to counter extremism and restore stability upon his rise to power following a September 2022 coup.

Under the guise of fighting terrorism, the junta has become increasingly authoritarian in its suppression of perceived opposition voices, with the junta being accused by Human Rights Watch of perpetrating mass killings of alleged terrorist supporters.

However, the threat of Islamist terrorism is not limited to Burkina Faso, as the landlocked Sahel region has increasingly become a global epicentre of jihadist violence.

Groups affiliated with al-Qaeda and the Islamic State have expanded operations in West Africa and the Sahel, particularly in the border region between Nigeria, Niger and Benin.

In an effort to fight terrorism, Burkina Faso and its Sahel allies, Niger and Mali, have formed the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), which aims to counter terrorism through shared intelligence and military resources.

Additionally, the three junta-led countries have rejected Western ties in favour of strategic and security partnerships with Russia, with Russian troops maintaining a presence in all three nations.

RFI and agencies, Maghrebi.org