Solhan and Tadaryat massacres

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Solhan and Tadaryat massacres
Part of the Jihadist insurgency in Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso - Yagha.svg
Yagha Province
LocationSolhan and Tadaryat, Yagha Province, Burkina Faso
Coordinates 13°22′35″N00°27′28″E / 13.37639°N 0.45778°E / 13.37639; 0.45778
Date4–5 June 2021
Deaths160 in Solhan
14 in Tadaryat
174 in total
PerpetratorUnknown

On 4 and 5 June 2021, insurgents attacked the Solhan and Tadaryat villages in the Yagha Province of Burkina Faso. The massacres left at least 174 people dead. Insurgents have been attacking the Sahel Region, along the border with Mali, since Islamists captured parts of Mali in 2013. [1]

Contents

Attacks

In the evening of 4 June 2021, 13 civilians and a soldier were killed in an attack in the village of Tadaryat, located 150 km (93 mi) to the north of Solhan. [1] The attackers also raided the community's motorbikes and cattle. [2] [3]

Hours later in the early morning of 5 June 2021, insurgents attacked Solhan village in Burkina Faso, killing at least 160 civilians, including 20 children, and wounding 40 others. [4] [5] [6] [7] Around 2 am, the attackers, mounted on around 20 motorcycles, targeted first the Volunteers for the Defense of the Homeland (VDP), an anti-jihadist civilian defense force, before they burned homes and a market. [7] [8] [9] A nearby mine was also attacked, Solhan being a centre for gold mining. [7] The attackers left around dawn, some three hours before police response forces arrived in the village. [7] Upon leaving the village the attackers left a number of improvised explosive devices on the roads leading into the village. These were disarmed by engineers from the Burkinabé army in the following days. [10]

The attacks are thought to have been the deadliest in Burkina Faso for five years. [6] Many of the survivors fled to Sebba, the capital of Yagha province, some 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) from Solhan. [11] The dead from Solhan have been buried in three mass graves by local residents. [4]

According to government spokesman Ousseni Tamboura, the attack in Solhan was carried out primarily by child soldiers between the ages of 12 and 14. [12]

Response

The government blamed terrorists for the attack; however no group has since claimed responsibility for the massacre. [13] The president, Roch Kaboré, issued a statement of condolences about the attack stating; "I bow before the memory of the hundreds of civilians killed in this barbaric attack and extend my condolences to the families of the victims." [2] Kaboré cancelled a planned trip to Lomé, Togo because of the incidents. [14]

A 72-hour period of national mourning was declared by the government. [15] Some women in the country planned to wear all white on 7 June 2021 as a mark of respect for those killed. [14] The Burkinabé National Police have redeployed units in response to the massacres and in anticipation of further attacks. [16]

António Guterres, secretary-general of the United Nations, who have thousands of peacekeepers stationed in the country, stated that he was "outraged" by the attacks. [5] Pope Francis mentioned the Solhan massacre in his Angelus prayers and stated that Africa needs peace and not violence. [17]

Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin denied responsibility for the attack and condemned it. [18]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 Ouagadougou attacks</span> Islamic terrorist attack in Burkina Faso

On 15 January 2016, gunmen armed with heavy weapons attacked the Cappuccino restaurant and the Splendid Hotel in the heart of Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso. The number of fatalities reached 30, while at least 56 were wounded; a total of 176 hostages were released after a government counter-attack into the next morning as the siege ended. Three perpetrators were also killed. The nearby YIBI hotel was then under siege, where another attacker was killed. Notably, former Swiss MPs Jean-Noël Rey and Georgie Lamon were killed. Responsibility for the attack was claimed by Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and Al-Mourabitoun.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Islamic State – Sahel Province</span> Islamic State affiliate

The Islamic State – Sahel Province(ISSP), formerly known as Islamic State in the Greater Sahara (IS-GS), is an Islamist militant group adhering to the ideology of Salafi Jihadism. IS-GS was formed on 15 May 2015 as the result of a split within the militant group Al-Mourabitoun. The rift was a reaction to the adherence of one of its leaders, Adnan Abu Walid al-Sahraoui, to the Islamic State. From March 2019 to 2022, IS-GS was formally part of the Islamic State – West Africa Province (ISWAP); when it was also called "ISWAP-Greater Sahara". In March 2022, IS declared the province autonomous, separating it from its West Africa Province and naming it Islamic State – Sahel Province (ISSP).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Solhan (department)</span> Department in Yagha Province, Burkina Faso

Solhan is a department or commune of Yagha Province in the Sahel Region of northern Burkina Faso.

On December 24, 2019, militants from the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara attacked the Burkinabe government military base in Arbinda, Sahel Region, Burkina Faso along with the town of Arbinda itself. The attack was halted due to French and Burkinabe air intervention, although 35 civilians were killed in the jihadists' massacre. The Arbinda attack was the deadliest incident in the jihadist insurgency in Burkina Faso in several years.

On 16 February 2020 a large group of gunmen attacked a Protestant service being hosted in the village of Pansi, Burkina Faso. Pansi, a rural village in Yagha Province in the Sahel Region of Burkina Faso, was targeted by terrorists who wanted to loot supplies and dissuade the local population from attending or supporting church services.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Volunteers for the Defense of the Homeland</span> Armed group in Burkina Faso

The Volunteers for the Defense of the Homeland is an armed self-defense group in Burkina Faso created to fight jihadist insurgents. It is an auxiliary force supporting the Burkina Faso Armed Forces.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Islamist insurgency in the Sahel</span> Insurgency throughout the Sahel and West Africa

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In early July 2022, two separate massacres occurred in Bourasso, Kossi Province and Namissiguima Department, Yatenga Province in Burkina Faso. The massacre in Bourasso killed 22 people, and the one in Namissiguima killed 12.

The Karma massacre was a massacre in the village of Karma, Burkina Faso. The massacre occurred on 20 April 2023 and is suspected to have been carried out by the 3rd Battalion of the Rapid Intervention Brigade from the Burkina Faso Armed Forces. Between 60–156 civilians were killed in the massacre making it one of the worst in the Burkina Faso insurgency.

On April 8, 2022, jihadists from Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal-Muslimin ambushed a Burkinabe military base near the town of Namissiguima, in Sanmatenga Province, Burkina Faso.

On January 28, 2023, suspected Islamic State jihadists attacked Burkinabe soldiers and Volunteers for the Defense of the Homeland (VDP) militiamen in the city of Falagountou, Burkina Faso.

On August 4, 2021, jihadists from the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara attacked several towns and Burkinabe bases in Markoye Department, Oudalan Province, Burkina Faso. Several rural villages were raided and civilians were killed, and the jihadist raids on Burkinabe bases in Tokabangou sparked battles that killed dozens of Burkinabe soldiers and ISGS fighters. The attacks were the deadliest day for the Burkinabe government since the Solhan and Tadaryat massacres in June 2021.

On August 18, 2021, jihadists from Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal-Muslimin ambushed a convoy of Burkinabe soldiers and civilians near Boukouma, Séno Province, Burkina Faso. The ambush sparked clashes between the jihadists and the soldiers, leaving dozens dead on both sides. At least 65 civilians were killed in the ambush as well.

On November 14, 2021, jihadists from Ansarul Islam and Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal-Muslimin attacked the mining town of Inata, Burkina Faso, the last place in Djibo Department under Burkinabe government control at the time of the attack. The Burkinabe outpost in Inata was overrun and over fifty soldiers were killed. The attack was the deadliest ambush against Burkinabe forces since the start of the jihadist insurgency in Burkina Faso in 2015, and was a primary reason for the January 2022 Burkina Faso coup d'état.

References

  1. 1 2 "Dozens killed in Burkina Faso attack". BBC News. 5 June 2021. Archived from the original on 5 June 2021. Retrieved 5 June 2021.
  2. 1 2 Akinwotu, Emmanuel (2021-06-05). "Suspected extremist attack on Burkina Faso village kills 100 people". The Guardian . Archived from the original on 2021-06-05. Retrieved 2021-06-05.
  3. ↑ "Une centaine de morts dans une attaque au Burkina Faso". Le Monde.fr (in French). 2021-06-05. Archived from the original on 2021-06-05. Retrieved 2021-06-05.
  4. 1 2 "Burkina Faso : après le massacre de Solhan, le bilan relevé à 160 morts". Le Monde.fr (in French). 2021-06-06. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  5. 1 2 "At least 132 civilians killed in Burkina Faso's worst attack in years". Reuters. 2021-06-05. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  6. 1 2 Stubley, Peter (2021-06-06). "At least 132 people killed by militants in Burkina Faso". The Independent. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  7. 1 2 3 4 "Attaque de Solhan: le Burkina Faso à nouveau endeuillé par le terrorisme". RFI (in French). 2021-06-06. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  8. ↑ "Around 100 civilians killed in Burkina Faso's worst attack in recent years". Reuters. 5 June 2021. Archived from the original on 5 June 2021. Retrieved 5 June 2021.
  9. ↑ "At least 114 killed in deadliest Burkina Faso attacks since 2015". The Hindu . Agence France-Presse. 2021-06-05. ISSN   0971-751X. Archived from the original on 2021-06-05. Retrieved 2021-06-05.
  10. ↑ "Burkina Faso: Des engins explosifs étaient placés sur les voies d'accès à Solhan". L'Actualité du Burkina Faso 24h (in French). 2021-06-07. Retrieved 8 June 2021.
  11. ↑ "Attackers kill 100 civilians in Burkina Faso village raid". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  12. ↑ Paquette, Danielle; Wilkins, Henry (June 24, 2021). "Child soldiers carried out attack that killed at least 138 people in Burkina Faso, officials say". The Washington Post . Archived from the original on June 25, 2021. A group of young boys helped carry out the early June attack that claimed at least 138 lives in the northeastern village of Solhan, government spokesman Ousseni Tamboura said. "The attackers were mostly children between the ages of 12 and 14," he told reporters this week in the capital, Ouagadougou.
  13. ↑ Peltier, Elian (5 June 2021). "More than 100 People Killed in Attack in Burkina Faso". The New York Times . Archived from the original on 5 June 2021. Retrieved 5 June 2021.
  14. 1 2 "Drame de Solhan : Le génie de nos ancêtres aurait pu nous servir de rempart - leFaso.net". lefaso.net (in French). 6 June 2021. Retrieved 7 June 2021.
  15. ↑ "Armed Attackers Kill 100 Civilians in Burkina Faso Village Raid". Voice of America. 5 June 2021. Archived from the original on 5 June 2021. Retrieved 5 June 2021.
  16. ↑ "Solhan : L'UNAPOL " compatit "". L'Actualité du Burkina Faso 24h (in French). 6 June 2021. Retrieved 7 June 2021.
  17. ↑ "Burkina Faso, sale a 160 morti il bilancio del massacro nel villaggio di Solhan". RAI News (in Italian). 6 June 2021. Retrieved 7 June 2021.
  18. ↑ "Sahel 2021: Communal Wars, Broken Ceasefires, and Shifting Frontlines | ACLED". 17 June 2021.
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