Town under attack

Gunmen killed 24 civilians, including a church pastor, and kidnapped three others on Monday in Burkina Faso, an official said. It was the latest attack against a religious leader in the increasingly unstable West African nation. The mayor of Boundore commune, Sihanri Osangola Brigadie, said the attack occurred in the town of Pansi in Yagha province. The roughly 20 attackers separated men from women. At least 18 other people were injured. The gunmen looted oil and rice from shops and forced the three youth they kidnapped to help transport it on their motorbikes, he said. Both Christians and Muslims were killed before a church was set on fire.