According to Human Rights Watch’s study, the armed forces of Burkina Faso have terrorized residents in the northeast of the country this year, with an increase of arbitrary killings, forced disappearances, and incidents of torture.
Séno province saw massive violence between February and May. According to investigations, at least 27 people, mostly Fulani ethnic members were either executed without trial, or have gone missing without trace, before being slaughtered.
For seven years, Jihadi fighters with ties to al-Qaida and the Islamic State, have engaged in a bloody conflict in Burkina Faso. Two coups occurred last year as a result of the bloodshed, which killed thousands of people, and split the nation.
However, the assessment by the New York-based group follows the aftermath of an April onslaught, which locals accused the security forces of exterminating at least 150 villagers in Karma, a village that borders Mali.
Requests for comment on the report, were ignored by a Burkina Faso government officials. According to one story, ten men, all Fulani, were driven outside of the village of Gangaol, dragged away in the backs of trucks, and then fired at.
“The soldiers shot and I ran. I saw the others falling on the ground, but I kept running. Only four of the men survived, two of whom suffered critical injuries,” the HRW report quoted a survivor of the incident.
“In the cases we documented, most of those who have been victims of these crimes were from the Fulani ethnic group,” explained Ilaria Allegrozzi, the Senior Regional Researcher at Human Rights Watch.
Moreover, due to accusations of working with Islamic militants, the Fulani people in Burkina Faso and Mali, have frequently come under attack from security personnel and other groups.
According to a story, the father of a teenage kid who was fatally shot by what appeared to be government agents remarked, “The only reason is hatred.”
The nation’s leaders have committed to double the number of Volunteer Auxiliary Military groups, or VDPs, to 100,000, coinciding with the spike in human right abuses. “The recruitment of VDPs has coincided with an increase of abuses by both sides,” Allegrozzi said.
Recruiters from the army have frequently been the target of violent intimidation by armed groups in Burkina Faso, much to how Burkinabe military raid communities thought to be hosting extremist groups.
Regarding the military forces, Allegrozzi remarked; “I think it’s also important to recognize that, they are fighting a legitimate war.” According to a government press release, 34 military personnel were brutally slain in a terrorist attack by alleged extremist rebels.
“What we are questioning is the way this fight is conducted, which is not according to human rights standards and doesn’t take into account civilian protection.”
Ilaria Allegrozzi, Human Right Watch’s Senior Regional Researcher.
Additionally, the report also asserted that, targeting people is unnecessary, inhumane, and ultimately useless.
“Executions and disappearances by Burkina Faso’s army are not only war crimes, but they breed resentment among targeted populations that fuel recruitment to armed groups.”
Carine Kaneza Nantulya, Deputy Africa Director at Human Rights Watch.
“Burkina Faso should ensure that, provost marshals, who are responsible for discipline in the armed forces and detainees’ rights, are present during all military operations,” the study revealed, and emphasized that, transitional authorities must work with the UN human rights office to hold criminals within the armed hierarchy accountable.
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