“A massacre”: At least 70 people killed in attack on village in Burkina Faso Tim Scott throws in towel: Republican withdraws from race for White House

In Burkina Faso, West Africa, prosecutors are investigating the killings of at least 70 people in the area in the north of the country disputed by the military and Islamists. The prosecutor general in the country ruled by a military junta after a coup said on Monday that mainly children and the elderly were killed in the November 5 attack on the village of Zaongo in the Central North region. Houses were also burned down. Last weekend, the EU and the US called on authorities in Burkina Faso to clarify the circumstances of the killings. Josep Borrell, the EU’s foreign policy chief, called it a bloodbath.

In Burkina Faso, as in neighboring states Mali and Niger, terrorist groups have proliferated, some of them linked to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State terrorist militia. The leadership that will take power after a coup in 2022 controls only about half of the national territory. In the spring she ordered a general mobilization after 50,000 volunteers had to be recruited for the battle.

According to research by the conflict data organization ACLED, more than 7,000 people have been killed in Burkina Faso this year alone. More than 1,700 people died in violence against civilians. As jihadists plant explosives or attack villages, rural residents accused of collaborating with terrorists are also targeted by state forces. (sda/dpa)