Authorities in Burkina Faso are investigating reports that some 170 people have been killed in attacks on three northern villages. A prosecutor says victims were “executed” last week.
The attacks took place on February 25. The prosecutor from the northern town of Ouahigouya, Aly Benjamin Coulibaly, says there have also been injuries and property damage. He does not mention who might be responsible for the massacre. According to him, the executions took place in Komsilga, Nodin and Soroe, three villages in Yatengo province in the Nord region.
Survivors told the French news agency AFP that dozens of women and young children were also among the victims. The attacks appear to be unrelated to deadly incidents at a mosque and a church on the same day, according to local sources.
There has been unrest for years in West African Burkina Faso, one of the poorest countries in the world. Extremists with ties to groups such as al-Qaeda and Islamic State are active there. Two coups took place in 2022.
