At least 12 civilians were killed in an attack by suspected jihadists in northern Burkina Faso on Thursday, local sources told AFP on Monday.
On Thursday, a “group of terrorists” attacked the village of Aorema, about six miles from Ouahigouya, the northern region’s capital, local residents told AFP.
“The attackers opened fire on a group of youths sitting in a kiosk (informal restaurant, ed.). Seven young people died instantly and three people died in their homes, hit by stray bullets. Two other people injured by bullets then succumbed to their wounds,” one of them explained.
Another resident said the number was “fourteen dead,” with several injured succumbing to their injuries in the days following the attack.
“It was the kiosk where the young people gathered that was directly attacked by the terrorists who had already entered the village and ordered the village young people not to gather there anymore,” he said.
The attack was confirmed by a security source, who assured that “operations are ongoing” in the area without providing an assessment.
Following this attack, a curfew was imposed throughout the northern region of Burkina Faso, which borders Mali and is regularly attacked by jihadists.
This curfew prohibits the movement of vehicles and people between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. until March 31.
In addition to the northern region, several provinces in the middle east, north middle and east have been imposed a curfew for a period of one to three months.
Since the beginning of the year, Burkina Faso has experienced an escalation in jihadist violence, with dozens of civilians and soldiers killed almost every week.
The violence, attributed to groups linked to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State (IS) organization, has left more than 10,000 dead – civilians and soldiers – and about two million displaced since 2015, according to NGOs.