Terrorist groups stepping up their operations in Burkina Faso
Violence has been on the rise in a significant manner in Burkina Faso.
Dozens of people were killed in a terrorist attack in Kodyel village in the Komandjari province near the border
with Niger on May 3.
This
was Burkina Faso's bloodiest attack in years, police said.
It
added that around 30 people were killed in the attack and 50 others injured.
The
same figures were confirmed by the Volunteers for the Defense of the Homeland.
The
security crisis intensifies in Burkina Faso because of the increasing
activities of terrorist organizations affiliated to al-Qaeda and the Islamic
State group in it.
These
organizations have been stepping up their attacks on security personnel and
civilians, despite security support offered by France to Burkina Faso.
Most
of the attacks are taking place in the northern part of the African country.
The attacks have so far left 1,200 people dead, according to a tally conducted
by the Agence
France-Presse.
The same attacks had caused the
displacement of more than a million people who fled from violence, the agency
said.
Terrorism
The Ansar al-Islam group is especially
active in Burkina Faso and Mali. The group adopts Salafi Jihadist ideas. It has
been operating in Burkina Faso since 2011.
The
group introduces itself as an offshoot of the Ansar el-Din group which is
active in Mali. The group stages attacks against Malian army troops and police.
The group's commander is affiliated to al-Qaeda.
Ansar
al-Islam hammered out an alliance with al-Qaeda in the Arab Maghreb and
al-Morabiteen Brigade in March 2017, AFP said.
The
Islamic State group is also active in Burkina Faso. The group stages lone-wolf
attacks which gives its members considerable freedom of movement.
