At least 44 people were killed by Islamic extremists in multiple attacks in northern Burkina Faso, the government said Saturday.
Jihadis attacked Kourakou and Tondobi villages in Seno province, said Lt. Col. P.F Rodolphe Sorgho, governor of the Sahel region in a statement. Sorgho called the attacks on Thursday and Friday “despicable and barbaric” and said the government was stabilizing the area. He called on people to remain calm.
The West African nation has been overrun by jihadi violence linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State group that’s killed thousands and displaced 2 million people over six years. Fighting has frustrated and divided a once peaceful population, leading to two military coups last year with each junta leader vowing to stem the attacks.
But the violence is intensifying and spreading as jihadis blockade villages, preventing hundreds of thousands of people from moving freely.
In February, the Islamic State group claimed responsibility for
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