Human Rights Watch said in a report released Thursday that Burkina Faso’s army has attacked two villages accused of collaborating with armed groups, killing 223 civilians, including infants and many children. .
The report said the mass killings occurred in the northern villages of Nong Dinh and Solo on February 25, and about 56 children were among the dead. Human rights groups called on the United Nations and African Union to send investigators and support local efforts to bring those responsible to justice.
“The massacres in the villages of Nondin and Solo are just the latest mass killings of civilians in counterinsurgency operations by Burkina Faso’s military,” Tirana Hassan, executive director of Human Rights Watch, said in a statement. “International assistance is essential to support credible investigations into potential crimes against humanity.”
Burkina Faso’s security forces are killing more civilians.1 Village Massacre Detailed by Survivors
The once peaceful country has been ravaged by violence between jihadists linked to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State and state-backed forces. Both sides have targeted civilians caught in the middle, with more than 2 million people displaced, more than half of them children. In a country run by repressive leaders who silence perceived dissidents, most attacks go unpunished and unreported.
HRW’s report comes as civilian casualties by Burkina Faso’s security forces rise significantly as the junta fights back a growing jihadist insurgency and attacks the population under the guise of counter-terrorism. provided valuable first-hand reports on the
In early April, the Associated Press verified accounts that the military attacked another village on November 5, killing at least 70 people. The details were similar: the military accused villagers of collaborating with armed groups and massacred them, including babies.
A mural seen in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, on March 1, 2023. In a report released on April 24, 2024, Human Rights Watch said that Burkina Faso’s military attacked two villages suspected of collaborating with jihadists linked to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State, killing infants and many others. It was announced that 223 civilians, including children, had been killed. (AP photo, file)
Witnesses and survivors told HRW that the Feb. 25 killings appeared to be in retaliation for an attack by Islamic militants on a military camp about 25 miles away near the provincial capital, Wahiguya. .
The civilian death toll was higher than initially announced by local authorities. Prosecutors previously said their office was investigating 170 deaths reported in attacks in these villages.
A Burkina Faso government spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment on the February 25 attack. Officials have previously denied killing civilians and said jihadists often disguise themselves as soldiers.
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According to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project, a U.S.-based nonprofit organization, Burkina Faso has been on the rise since jihadist violence linked to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State first hit the West African country nine years ago. It is said that more than 20,000 people were killed. .
Burkina Faso experienced two coups in 2022. Since taking power in September 2022, the military junta led by Colonel Ibrahim Traore has promised to repel extremists, but analysts say the violence has only worsened. Approximately half of Burkina Faso’s territory remains outside government control.
Frustrated by the lack of progress on Western military aid over the years, the junta severed military ties with former colonial power France and instead turned to Russia for security assistance.
