Latest Burkina Faso News

Burkina Faso’s junta suspends Voice of America broadcasts over coverage of militant violence

Oct. 08, 2024 10:46 AM EDT

ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — Burkina Faso’s military junta has suspended Voice of America's broadcasts for three months over its coverage of militant attacks in the country and in neighboring Mali, the state news agency reported, in the latest measure targeting media freedom in the country. ...

Media freedom group sounds alarm on increased security risks for local journalists in Africa's Sahel

Sep. 24, 2024 12:49 PM EDT

DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — Local journalists in the Sahel region of Africa are facing increased security risks, a media freedom group said Tuesday, as extremist attacks and military coups have shaken the region in recent years. At least two community radio journalists were killed and...

Burkina Faso's ruling junta claims foiling an attempt to destabilize the country

Sep. 24, 2024 10:33 AM EDT

OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso (AP) — Burkina Faso’s ruling junta said it thwarted an attempt to destabilize the African country “with the help of foreign powers.” A transitional government has been running the West African country after the military seized power in 2022,...

Attacks by Islamic extremists are rampant in Africa's Sahel. Here's what we know about them

Sep. 22, 2024 03:04 AM EDT

DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — Extremist attacks in Sahel, an arid swath of land south of the Sahara in Africa, have proliferated in recent months: Last week, Islamic militants attacked Bamako, the capital of Mali, for the first time in almost a decade, demonstrating their capacity to carry out large...

A Swiss citizen has been arrested in Burkina Faso, Switzerland's foreign ministry says

Aug. 28, 2024 10:15 AM EDT

DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — A Swiss citizen has been arrested in Burkina Faso, Swiss authorities said on Wednesday, as the West African nation governed by a military junta continues to sever its ties with the West. The citizen's identity was not immediately released. The Swiss foreign...

At least 100 people killed in central Burkina Faso in latest jihadi attack

Aug. 26, 2024 16:01 PM EDT

ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — At least 100 villagers and soldiers were killed in central Burkina Faso during a weekend attack on a village by al-Qaida-linked jihadis, according to videos of the violence analyzed by a regional specialist, who described the assault as one of the deadliest this year in the...

Today in History: Aug. 4, massive explosion rocks Beirut

Aug. 04, 2024 00:01 AM EDT

Today is Sunday, Aug. 4, the 217th day of 2024. There are 149 days left in the year. Today in history: On Aug. 4, 2020, nearly 3,000 tons of ammonium nitrate that had been improperly stored for years in the port of Beirut, Lebanon, exploded, killing more than 200...

7 security forces and 5 rangers killed in Benin national park as jihadi violence takes root

Jul. 28, 2024 05:06 AM EDT

COTONOU, Benin (AP) — At least seven members of Beninese security forces and five rangers working with a conservation nonprofit have been killed in an attack by an armed group in Benin's National Park W that is overrun by militants, according to the conservation group. The attack...

At least 26 villagers killed in latest violent attack in central Mali

Jul. 22, 2024 19:21 PM EDT

BAMAKO, Mali (AP) — At least 26 people were killed after an armed group attacked a village in Mali’s central region, near the border with Burkina Faso, a government official said Monday, the latest violent attack in the conflict-hit region. The assailants attacked villagers as...