The military-led government of Burkina Faso has announced it thwarted a coup plot, marking yet another alleged attempt to unseat junta leader Captain Ibrahim Traoré since he seized power in 2022.

Security Minister Mahamadou Sana revealed that the latest coup attempt was “a major plot” orchestrated by a group of current and former soldiers collaborating with “terrorist leaders.” Sana alleged the group intended to launch a deadly assault on the presidential palace, aimed at throwing the country into “total chaos.”

The minister stated that the plot was rooted in neighbouring Ivory Coast, accusing it of harbouring the coup masterminds. He claimed the plan sought to destabilise Burkina Faso to the point where it would require international intervention and potentially be placed under the “supervision of an international organisation.”

Burkina Faso has remained on edge since Traoré’s rise to power amid growing dissatisfaction with the previous leadership’s inability to curb escalating jihadist attacks. Since the 2022 takeover, the junta has promised sweeping security reforms and forged new military partnerships — most notably with Russia — yet nearly 40% of the country remains under the control of insurgents.

Coup Plot Linked To Ivory Coast Base

In the televised statement, Sana revealed that the plotters hoped to sway elements within the army by leveraging religious and traditional leaders as intermediaries.

“The manoeuvre was to culminate, according to the terrorist plotters’ plan, on Wednesday, April 16, 2025, in an assault on the presidency of Burkina Faso by a group of soldiers recruited by the nation’s enemies.”
Security Minister Mahamadou Sana

He pointed fingers at two former army officers believed to be based in Ivory Coast and accused them of leading the planning efforts from abroad. “The brains outside the country are all located in Ivory Coast,” he said.

According to the minister, these operatives had passed on “sensitive information” to jihadist groups, enabling them to intensify their attacks on both civilians and military targets, and to “incite a revolt against the authorities.”

This alleged coup attempt occurred last week, though it only came to light recently. According to security sources, several individuals, including two military officers, were arrested.

The government in Ivory Coast has yet to comment on the accusation that it hosted those behind the coup plot. However, this is not the first time Burkina Faso’s junta has levelled such claims at its southern neighbour, which it has repeatedly accused of offering refuge to political opponents in exile.

In November 2024, authorities in Ouagadougou said they had disrupted a separate plot to “destabilise” the regime.

Despite efforts by the Traoré-led junta to project stability and assert its sovereignty through regional realignment and foreign partnerships, Burkina Faso remains fraught with insecurity.

For many observers, the repeated claims of coup attempts suggest that internal dissent within the military and wider society has not been completely extinguished.

These frequent coup allegations come amid Burkina Faso’s shifting geopolitical alliances. Alongside fellow military-led governments in Mali and Niger, Burkina Faso has withdrawn from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

In response to the trio’s decision to exit the regional bloc, ECOWAS has announced an Extraordinary Session of its Council of Ministers from April 22 to 23, 2025, in Accra, Ghana.

The two-day meeting will focus on outlining the modalities of the withdrawal process and evaluating the broader implications for ECOWAS institutions and programmes operating in Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger.

The bloc is also expected to deliberate on how the withdrawal may affect regional integration efforts, economic cooperation, and counterterrorism strategies.

As the region braces for the ECOWAS session in Accra, eyes remain on Burkina Faso’s political future and whether the junta can fend off both insurgent threats and internal power struggles.