Burkina Faso declares ‘general mobilization’ after series of terrorist attacks

Burkina Faso’s military junta declared a ‘general mobilization’ which should help the army to recapture 40% of the country’s territory, which is controlled by terrorists affiliated with Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group, as the deadly insurgency continues.

The goal of the ‘general mobilization’ is to give the state “all necessary means” to combat a string of terrorist attacks since the start of this year, the head of the military junta has said. The junta aims to create a “legal framework for all the actions to be taken” against the insurgents, a statement from the presidency said.

Captain Ibrahim Traoré, the West African country’s transitional president, who staged the most recent coup in September last year, has set a goal of retaking 40% of Burkina Faso’s territory from terrorist groups. “Faced with this security situation, the health of the nation depends on a surge of national spirit by all its daughters and sons in order to find a solution,” Defense Minister Colonel Major Kassoum Coulibaly said in a statement.

The military junta did not disclose details of the plan but according to a security source who did not want to be identified the plan would include “a state of emergency for the affected territories” and also an “advisory” that gives the president “the right to requisition people, goods and services and the right to restrain certain civil liberties.”

In February, the junta already announced a plan to recruit 5,000 additional soldiers to battle the deadly insurgency that has reportedly left more than 10,000 people dead since 2015 in what is one of the world’s poorest countries.