A recent massacre in Burkina Faso that took the lives of more than 100 people was committed by child soldiers aged 12 to 14, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) reported on Thursday, citing local authorities
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 24th June, 2021) A recent massacre in Burkina Faso that took the lives of more than 100 people was committed by child soldiers aged 12 to 14, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) reported on Thursday, citing local authorities.
On June 5, a group of armed assailants raided the village of Solhan in the country's northeast, killing up to 170 people. Following the incident, which became the deadliest attack in Burkina Faso in years, the government declared a three-day mourning period.
UNICEF reported 130 deaths in the Solhan attack, with many of the victims being children. According to the local authorities, the assailants were mostly children and adolescents between 12 and 14 years old. The deployment of child soldiers sparked outrage from the UN agency.
"We strongly condemn the recruitment of children and adolescents by non-state armed groups. This is a grave violation of their fundamental rights," Sandra Lattouf, UNICEF Representative in Burkina Faso, said in a statement.
Following the massacre, UNICEF has dispatched humanitarian assistance to provide first-aid care to 13,000 displaced people in the area.
According to the agency, there are currently over 1.2 million displaced people in the country, 61% of whom are children.
Burkina Faso is located in the region of Sahel, a hotbed of Islamic insurgency in Africa. The country's northern regions that border Niger and Mali have been repeatedly targeted by militants affiliated with al-Qaeda and the Islamic State terrorist groups (both banned in Russia). The surge in attacks in recent months prompted the government to evacuate some villages located in that part of Burkina Faso.
