No fewer than 40 civilians were killed in a jihadist attack in the northern Burkina Faso town of Djibo at the weekend, the UN Human Rights Office said Tuesday.
The national armed forces of the west African nation released these images, which were broadcasted on national television, purportedly showing jihadists launching an attack on an army detachment in Djibo, with the army responding to the assault.
Security sources indicate that both sides suffered losses.
“A large number of Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal Muslimeen (JNIM) fighters attacked a military base, homes and Internally Displaced People’s camps in the city Djibo, in the Sahel region, killing at least 40 civilians and injuring more than 42,” the UN agency said.
Burkina Faso is currently grappling with a jihadist insurgency that originated from neighboring Mali in 2015, resulting in the death of over 17,000 civilians and soldiers and the displacement of two million people.
The west African nation is ruled by a transitional government put in place after a September 2022 coup.
