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Rabat – At least 35 civilians have been killed in an attack using an improvised explosive device in Burkina Faso’s northern region, the regional governor announced on Tuesday.
The explosion occurred as a military convoy traveled from Bourzanga to Djibo in the Sahel region, which borders Mali and Niger. In addition to the dead victims, 37 others were wounded.
Locals and witnesses said that dozens of other vehicles, including public transport buses, were also hit by the blast. The explosion also harmed convoys and trucks that were delivering food supplies to certain areas.
The Sahel region has been the center of a security crisis plaguing the larger Mali-Niger-Burkina Faso-Chad corridor for a decade. The fragile area has seen increased activity from groups such as Al-Qaeda and ISIS in recent years.
Fighting armed groups in the northern and eastern regions of Burkina Faso has become a top priority for the West African country’s leaders. The army said it has been taking “offensive action” to combat armed insurgents, as well as initiating dialogue with the leaders of some of the region’s armed groups.
According to the Norwegian Refugee Council, one in ten people in Burkina Faso have been displaced by conflict or food security issues. Severe food insecurity has almost doubled since 2021, as residents in the African country continue to abandon fields and livestock in search of safer places to live.
