Burkina Faso: army summarily executed 223 civilians, babies — rights group

Human Rights Watch (HRW) has accused Burkina Faso’s military forces of “summarily executing” 223 civilians, including at least 56 children, in two northern villages in February as part of its campaigns against civilians suspected of collaborating with armed groups.
Soldiers killed at least 44 people, including 20 children, in Nondin, and 179 people, including 36 children, in nearby Soro, HRW has said in a new report published on Thursday (25 April), stressing that this was among the worst crimes committed by the military in nearly a decade. The international rights group also said the massacre was probably part of a widespread military campaign against civilians accused of having links to armed groups. The HRW report documented accounts from dozens of individuals who witnessed the killings between February and March and verified the videos and photos of the aftermath of the atrocity shared by survivors.
Tirana Hassan, HRW’s executive director, condemned the failure of the Burkinabe authorities to prevent and investigate the cases, saying the lack of consequences from the local authorities “underlines why international assistance is critical to support a credible investigation into possible crimes against humanity.” A similar army massacre raid was reportedly carried out in another village on 5 November last year, in which at least 70 people were killed, among them babies, after being accused by the army of collaborating with militants. The Burkinabe government has not commented on the attack on the villages on 25 February. The authorities in Ouagadougou have previously denied any civilian killings and insisted that jihadi fighters often disguise themselves as soldiers.