DOZENS DEAD IN BURKINA FASO ATTACKS

Militants strike at country’s military HQ, French embassy

DOZENS of people were killed on Friday in twin attacks on the French embassy in Burkina Faso and the country’s military headquarters, an assault that coincided with a meeting of regional anti-jihadist forces.

The government said the attack on the military was a suicide car bombing and that a planned meeting of the G5 Sahel regional anti-terrorism force might have been the target.

Officials from Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger were at the meeting, representing the G5 Sahel nations who have launched a joint military force to combat militants on the southern rim of the Sahara.

Eight members of the armed forces were killed by the blast and the parallel attack on the French embassy, while 80 were wounded, said Security Minister Clement Sawadogo.

The minister said eight attackers had been shot dead.

“The vehicle was packed with explosives” and caused “huge damage”, Sawadogo said, adding that it was a suicide attack.

Three security sources, two in France and one in West Africa, said at least 28 people were killed in the attack on the military HQ alone. French government sources said there were no French casualties and described the situation as “under control”.

“Our country is once again the target of dark forces,” said President Roch Marc Christian Kabore.

The violence began mid-morning when heavy gunfire broke out in the centre of the Burkinabe capital. Witnesses said five armed men got out of a car and opened fire on passers-by before heading towards the French embassy.

At the same time, the bomb went off near the headquarters of the Burkinabe armed forces and the French cultural centre, about 1km from the site of the first attack. Sawadogo said the G5 meeting was supposed to have been held at the headquarters, but had been moved to another room.

“Perhaps it was the target. We do not know at the moment. In any case, the room was literally destroyed by the explosion,” the minister said.

The G5 Sahel’s completed force would comprise 5,000 troops and aimed to be fully operational by the end of the month. It had carried out operations against militants with help from the French army.