Based on government data, the total number of internally displaced individuals in Burkina Faso has increased by over 2,000% since 2019. This is as a result of terrorist activities by al-Qaida and the Islamic State group. This country has one of the world’s most rapidly expanding displaced populations.
More than 2 million people, mostly women and children were found to be internally displaced in the West African country, per statistics released last month. This conflict has forced many people from their homes, and farms and into crowded cities or makeshift camps, which has exacerbated an already dire humanitarian crisis.
Due to a shortage of funding and increasing requirements, aid organizations and the government are attempting to intervene. Tens of thousands of people are suffering from extreme hunger, and one in four people need assistance.
“The spectrum of consequences for people are vast, but grim at every point. A lot of people might die, and they’re dying because, they weren’t able to access food and health services, they weren’t properly protected, and the humanitarian assistance and the government response wasn’t sufficient,” Alexandra Lamarche, a senior fellow at advocacy group Refugees International, explained.
However, two overthrows occurred last year, as a result of the violence that has divided the once-peaceful country. The military leadership promised to end the unrest, but since Capt. Ibrahim Traore took over in September, terrorist attacks have persisted and grown in number.
Conflict experts estimated that, the government still controls fewer than 50% of the nation, mostly in rural areas. Rida Lyammouri, a senior fellow at the Policy Center for the New South explained that, al-Qaida and Islamic State-affiliated forces command or pose a danger to sizable territories. “State security forces don’t have the human resources and equipments to fight both groups at all fronts,” he said.
The humanitarian situation has been made worse by the Jihadis practice of obstructing localities, stopping people from traveling freely and supplies from entering. Relief organizations estimate that, almost 800,000 people in more than 20 communities are under siege.
“The situation is very difficult,” said Bibata Sangli, 53, who left the eastern town of Pama in January 2022 shortly before the village was assaulted. “People don’t have food, children don’t have school.” According to Sangli, she still has relatives there who are unable to escape.
Jafar Dicko, the leading jihadist in Burkina Faso, was contacted by a local leader last year. The official claimed Dicko’s group blockades communities that don’t adhere to its laws, which include forbidding alcohol and demanding women to cover their faces. Due to his lack of authorization to talk to the the press, the leader spoke on the pretext of confidentiality.
The United Nations describe their means in delivering aid ,as a very expensive method. the UN employed Chinook heavy-lift helicopters in January, to airlift food to regions that couldn’t be reached by road. The capacity of assistance organizations to operate has decreased, as the humanitarian crisis worsens.
Targeting Aid Workers
According to classified data for humanitarian groups acquired, attacks against aid groups committed by the security personnel grew from one in 2021 to 11 last year since, the military took control of Burkina Faso’s government in January 2022. The incidents involved the arrest, detention, and injury of personnel.
According to a text message posted to a social media group for aid workers, security forces executed an aid worker with a Burkina Faso relief organization in the Sahel region, the huge area below the Sahara Desert, in November.
The junta leader, Traore, has been accused by rights organizations, analysts, and civilians of having little concern for the rights of others, freedom of speech, or holding people culpable for the random murders of anyone believed to be assisting the insurgents.
According to locals from the town of Karma, where the majority of the attacks occurred, Burkina Faso’s security forces massacred around 150 people in the north in April. The killings are the subject of a criminal probe, according to the prosecution. A social media video revealed that kids were slain by Burkina Faso security forces at a military facility in the north of the country.
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