Ouagadougou-SANA
The number of victims of the terrorist attack on the town of Salhan, northeastern Burkina Faso, has risen to 160, according to a new toll announced today.
AFP quoted local sources as saying that the outcome of the attack, which was launched by gunmen last Friday night in Salahan, rose from 100 to 138 dead and then to 160, indicating that the attack is the deadliest in the country since 2015.
A deputy in the area stated that “160 bodies belonging to local residents, including 20 children, were found in three mass graves,” considering that the situation is still fragile in the area, and residents are still fleeing from the town to the nearby areas of Siba and Dori.
The attack came in the wake of another attack late yesterday evening that targeted the village of Tadriyat in the same area, during which more than 14 people were killed, including a number of members of groups supporting the army. The two attacks come a week after two other attacks in the same area, killing four people.
The government in Burkina Faso decided yesterday to declare 72 hours of national mourning and confirmed that the army and security forces are working to eliminate terrorists and bring calm to the country.