The Burkinabe army on Wednesday (August 3) acknowledged the death of civilians in airstrikes against "
terrorist groups
" in eastern Burkina Faso, without specifying the number, residents of the region interviewed by AFP speaking of “
thirty
” killed.
"
Targeting actions targeting terrorist groups responsible for several abuses were carried out in several localities (Djamanga, Djabiga, Mandéni, Bounou, Obiagou, Pognoa-Sankoado) in the Eastern region
" Monday, indicates the staff of the army in a press release.
“
During these operations, which neutralized several dozen terrorists, the strikes unfortunately caused collateral victims among the civilian population,
” he adds.
The victims, whose number was not communicated by the staff, "
were near a terrorist hideout on the Kompienga-Pognoa axis
" when they "
unfortunately were fatally hit by projectiles
" ,
Read alsoIn Burkina Faso, the frenetic spiral of violence
Residents of the region interviewed by telephone by AFP from Ouagadougou said that "
thirty civilians
", mostly women, were killed in the army strikes.
“
They were gathered for the inauguration of a mill when the tragedy occurred
,” explained one of them on condition of anonymity.
The staff indicates that an investigation "
was immediately opened in order to locate the responsibilities
" and presents its "
sincere condolences to the families and loved ones of the victims
".
He assures of his "
commitment to fully collaborate with the competent services and the populations to shed light on this unfortunate incident
".
For several months, the Burkinabe army has multiplied air operations against armed jihadist groups.
She admitted to having accidentally killed a civilian on June 11, during an “
air action
” carried out in the Center-South region against a group of armed traffickers.
An investigation had been opened by the military prosecutor.
Burkina Faso, where soldiers took power in January promising to make the fight against jihadists their priority, is confronted like several neighboring countries with the violence of armed jihadist movements affiliated with Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group, who since 2015 have caused thousands of deaths and some two million displaced people.
