Two Ministers sacked in Burkina Faso over deadly jihadist attacks africanews.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from africanews.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
A spate of mass killings in Niger’s Tillabery region has raised the spectre of broader civil strife. Most worrying is the ethnic dimension to the crimes. Authorities should move quickly to prioritize civilian protection lest vigilantes take matters into their own hands.
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DJIBO, Burkina Faso
In early October, Abu Sharawi got a call from his commander to lay down his gun. He had been fighting for more than three years with a jihadist group in Burkina Faso’s northern Sahel region but was told an agreement had been reached with the government to stop the attacks, which have killed thousands of people and driven more than one million from their homes.
“[They said] ‘We decided to stop fighting. It’s time to sit and discuss. Many people have died, and animals and resources were lost. Using guns will not solve the problems’,” recalled 28-year-old Sharawi.
Self-declared hunter trades big game for jihadists in Burkina Faso Civilians given authority to take law into their own hands to stop spread of militant violence
Tue, Mar 9, 2021, 01:00 Amanda Coakley in Fada N’Gourma
Timothé Mano in Fada N’Gourma, Burkina Faso. Photograph: Amanda Coakley
Outside his temporary lodgings in the city of Fada N’Gourma in eastern Burkina Faso, Timothé Mano proudly waves the blade that he alleges has ended the lives of dozens of militants. The 46-year-old is a commander in the VDP, a civilian volunteer force legalised in early 2020 to help Burkina Faso’s beleaguered army combat the growing threat posed by armed Islamists.