Several soldiers killed in Burkina Faso attack days after official French exit

Ouagadougou — At least eight soldiers were killed and three wounded when their unit was ambushed in northern Burkina Faso on Friday, the army said on Monday, the latest reported incident in an area that has become a hotbed of jihadist activity.

The attack occurred two days before France officially marked the end of its military operations in the West African nation, where in 2015 about 400 French special forces had been sent to help fight an insurgency that spread from neighbouring Mali.

The soldiers were attacked in Oudalan province, in Burkina Faso’s Sahel region, which shares a border with Mali.

Eight bodies have been found so far and several soldiers are still missing, the army said in a statement, adding that three wounded soldiers were evacuated from the scene.

It did not directly blame anyone for the attack but said about 60 “terrorists” were killed in a counteroffensive air strike targeting “enemies” moving towards the border.

Burkina Faso is one of several West African countries grappling with a jihadist insurgency.

Violence has spread to neighbouring countries despite costly international military interventions and UN peacekeeping efforts. Thousands have been killed and millions displaced.

Frustrations over the lack of safety spurred two coups in Mali and two in Burkina Faso since 2020, placing power in the hand of juntas that have been burning bridges with traditional Western allies.

France’s relations with Burkina Faso have sharply deteriorated over the past year, culminating with Ouagadougou giving Paris one month to withdraw troops in January.

France withdrew its forces from Mali last year after the junta there started working with Russian military contractors. Several other countries have since followed suit.

The withdrawals have increased concerns about the outlook for a conflict that has seen the number of Islamist attacks more than double since 2020, according to the Africa Center for Strategic Studies, a US department of defense institution.

Medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors without Borders) suspended its operations in Burkina Faso last week to carry out a risk assessment following the killing of two its staff on February 8.

Reuters