By Diana Rose Wairumbi
Residents of Ouagadougou are yet to recover from shock, after militants in Burkina Faso’s capital wounded dozens and killed eight people in a planned assault on the army headquarters and French embassy that France’s foreign minister said was likely carried out by “terrorist groups”, Reuter’s reports.
During a press conference, Burkina Faso’s security minister Clément Sawado told journalists that the attack appeared to have been targeted at a meeting of senior officers but unfortunately for the attackers the assembly was moved at the last minute.
‘’ Actually, a meeting was supposed to be held at the military headquarters but was held in another room. If the meeting took place where it was supposed to, it would have been an extremely dramatic situation because many of our officers had to meet with the Chief of Staff for this meeting. ”
The Burkina Faso government says 8 assailants and at least eight government troops lost their lives during the attack, but several reports from news agencies suggest a bloodier outcome with dozens reportedly killed.
Sahel, West Africa’s arid region is experiencing violence spike by militant groups, some with links to Islamic State and al Qaeda, which is drawing an increasingly aggressive response from countries including United States and France.
This is the third major assault on Ouagadougou in just over two years, so far there has been no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.
Sawadogo said 80 people were wounded, among them 3 seriously injured after a car laden with explosives blew up in the army headquarters.
