Jihadists attack north Burkina Faso towns amid film festival
OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso — Suspected jihadists have attacked two communities in Burkina Faso’s north while an international film festival takes place in the capital of the West African nation, authorities said Tuesday.
The Monday night attacks in Baraboule and Tongomayel injured at least one woman as assailants attacked several official buildings. They set fire to the police station in Tongomayel and shot at the police station, city hall and homes of local officials in Baraboule before retreating toward the border with Mali.
The Ansaru Islam militant group, which has links to the Ansar Dine extremist movement in Mali, said it staged the attacks. Ansaru Islam claimed responsibility for killing at least 12 gendarmes in December in Soum province. The leader of Ansaru Islam is a radical Burkina Faso preacher who earlier this year asked teachers to stop teaching in French and to teach the Qur’an in Arabic.
The international film festival known as Fespaco is currently underway in the capital of Ouagadougou, 230 kilometres (143 miles) to the south. Some 200 films will be screened during the weeklong festival, including 20 feature films competing for grand prize — the Stallion of Yennenga.