A prominent human rights group on Wednesday called for the Burkina Faso authorities to investigate allegations of mass extrajudicial killings of at least 180 men whose bodies were discovered in the northern town of Djibo this past spring
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 08th July, 2020) A prominent human rights group on Wednesday called for the Burkina Faso authorities to investigate allegations of mass extrajudicial killings of at least 180 men whose bodies were discovered in the northern town of Djibo this past spring.
The bodies were mostly identified as members of the Fulani and Peuhl ethnic communities and were buried between April and May. Notably, terrorist groups and militias fighting in West and Central Africa target representatives of these communities to recruit them.
"The Burkina Faso authorities need to urgently uncover who turned Djibo into a 'killing field,'" Sahel director at Human Rights Watch Corinne Dufka said.
The human rights group stated that existing evidence indicates that the government security forces might be involved in extrajudicial mass executions.
The HRW noted that it in late June it had informed the Burkina Faso government about its research connected to the burials and the authorities responded by committing to starting an investigation into the matter and suggesting that the executions could have been carried out by armed Islamist groups.
Burkina Faso has been struggling with jihadist groups linked to Al Qaeda and the Islamic State (banned in Russia) group since 2016. Hundreds of civilians have been killed and many others have suffered due to the conflict.
