Twin attacks leave at least 29 dead in Burkina Faso
At least 29 people were killed in twin militant attacks in northern Burkina Faso on Sunday, local media reported Monday.
Both attacks occurred in the northern Sanmatenga province.
A van loaded with people and goods rode over a bomb on Sunday, resulting in the death of 15 civilians and the injury of six others.
In the meantime, 14 people were killed around 50 km away when militants ambushed bicycle drivers carrying food products, said the report.
The French news agency AFP reports that locals sources said many of the dead in the convoy were the drivers of the vehicles carrying provisions for people displaced by fighting.
The government has vowed to take steps to avoid the recurrence of such incidents, saying that military reinforcements have been deployed.
“Military reinforcements have been deployed and a thorough search in under way,” Government spokesman Remis Dandjinou said in a statement.
Since 2015, Burkina Faso has been facing a series of terrorist attacks that caused over 500 deaths and 280,000 displaced people.
The United Nations reports escalating fighting, some fueled by ethnic and religious beliefs, has forced more than 237,000 people to flee their homes.
On August 19, 24 armed forces were killed in an attack on army detachment in Koutougou, Soum.