Human Rights Watch (HRW) accused the Government of Burkina Faso on Tuesday, October 29, of unnecessarily exposing civilians to the risk of jihadist attacks, following the massacre of at least a hundred of them at the end of August in the north.
This murder, carried out on August 24 in Barsalogho and claimed by the Group to Support Islam and Muslims (GSIM, linked to Al Qaeda), is one of the bloodiest recorded in the history of the country. “An Islamist armed group massacred at least 133 people in the town of Barsalogho (…) “Mostly civilians forced by the military to dig a trench to protect this city where a military base is located.”explains HRW in a report.
This figure established by the NGO “thanks to the analysis of videos and testimonies” understand “dozens of children”to which are added at least 200 injured. Burkinabé authorities have not reported any number of victims, but the Collective Justice of Barsalogho (CJB), made up of relatives of the victims, has reported more than 400 deaths.
“Forced labor”
“This massacre is the latest example of atrocities committed by armed Islamist groups against civilians whom the government has exposed to unnecessary risks.”HRW denounces. He “demonstrates the inadequacy of the Burkina Faso government’s efforts to protect civilians”insists the NGO, which asks in particular that ” cease “ to use them “as forced labor in war zones”.
Contacted by HRW, the Ministry of Justice responded that the testimonies of forced labor “they are not proven” and mentioned the opening of an investigation by the Kaya high court.
Survivors and witnesses told HRW that soldiers “defeated” and forced recalcitrant men to leave the city to dig a defensive trench, without paying them and ignoring reports of the presence of“armed men” near the construction site.
“They didn’t forgive anyone”
“I didn’t want to go because I thought it was risky, but they hit me with a rope and forced me to go”a farmer from the city, like many other residents, explains to HRW. “They handed us over to the terrorists”one resident laments while another says: “The fact that the army forced people to dig (…) “It made us a target.”. “Between 10 and 11 a.m., GSIM fighters killed dozens of civilians working in the military trench and other people who were nearby”develops the NGO.
“They came to exterminate us. They didn’t forgive anyone. They arrived on motorcycles, two on each one. They fired continuously, as if they had ammunition left over. “People were dropping like flies.”recalls one survivor who lost five members of his family in the attack.
Since Captain Traoré’s coup d’état in September 2022, Burkinabé authorities have occasionally announced that they are opening investigations, but have never reported possible arrests or convictions in connection with jihadist attacks or mass killings. Jihadist violence has caused more than 26,000 deaths in Burkina since 2015, among civilians and soldiers, including more than 13,500 since the 2022 coup, according to the NGO Acled.
