(4 minutes read)
· Recent incidents in Ouagadougou and other cities in Burkina Faso between the forces of order and demonstrators are being watched very seriously by the international community
· Man in the street is up against the jihadist violence that has ravaged the country since 2015
· Jihadist violence has killed more than 2,000 people in the past six years and forced 1.5 million to flee their homes
Recent incidents in Ouagadougou and other cities in Burkina Faso between the forces of order and demonstrators are being watched very seriously by the international community. Man in the street is up against the jihadist violence that has ravaged the country since 2015. Jihadist violence has killed more than 2,000 people in the past six years and forced 1.5 million to flee their homes.
On Sunday, January 23, shots were heard in several places. Somewhere close to that place is Camp Sangoulé, which houses the prison where General Gilbert Diendéré, a close associate of former President Blaise Compaoré who was overthrown in 2014, is being held. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison for an attempted coup in 2015. General Diendéré is currently on trial for his alleged role in the 1987 assassination of former president Thomas Sankara.
The government of President Roch Marc Christian Kaboré acknowledges the shooting. But denies “a takeover by the army. The government claimed that institutions were not threatened for the time being. Of late, several soldiers have been detained for allegedly attempting to destabilize institutions.
Supporters of rebellious forces set fire to the headquarters of the ruling party in Ouagadougou, before being dispersed by the police. Outside the Sangoulé Lamizana barracks, some forty soldiers fired into the air near several hundred jubilant supporters. The airbase barracks were also cordoned off by hooded soldiers firing into the air.
The mutinous soldiers are demanding the replacement of the army chiefs, change in the means used to fight against jihadist groups, as well as better care for the wounded. Discussions took place between representatives of the mutineers and the Minister of Defense. Curfew is declared across the county and schools are closed. Internet connections are also cut off.
On the evening of 23, the president decreed a curfew. The Ministry of Education announced that schools would remain closed for the next two days. Gunfire was heard near the president’s residence, as well as in the Sangoulé Lamizana and Baba Sy military camps.
There is a version that on Sunday 4, soldiers took up position in front of Radio Télévision du Burkina (RTB). The president was arrested and detained at the Sangoulé Lamizana barracks, along with others including the head of parliament and ministers, according to security sources. However, the government sources maintain that the president was “exfiltrated” from his residence on Sunday evening by gendarmes of his guard “before the arrival of armed elements who fired on the vehicles of his convoy. As reported by www.trendsnafrica.com , the African Union (AU) strongly condemned the coup attempt while Kaboré’s party (ruling party) denounced an aborted assassination attempt on the president. The EU and the United States called for the release of President Kaboré.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres “strongly” condemned the military coup and called on the perpetrators “to lay down their arms” and protect the “physical integrity” of the president.
