More than 1,800 civilians have been killed in Burkina Faso since Ibrahim TraorĂ© seized power three years ago in acts amounting to “war crimes and crimes against humanity”, a new report says. Human Rights Watch (HRW) says about 1,837 civilians, including dozens of children, were killed in 57 incidents between January 2023 and August 2025. It attributes most of the killings – 1,255 – to the military and allied militias, with the rest blamed on Islamist militants.
HRW finds President TraorĂ© and six senior military commanders “may be liable as a matter of command responsibility for grave abuses and should be investigated”. It also says five jihadist leaders may be culpable. The BBC has asked the BurkinabĂ© authorities to comment on the report.
They have dismissed previous accusations that their forces have killed civilians. One of the reasons the military gave for seizing power was to tackle the jihadist groups linked to al-Qaeda who have been waging an insurgency in Burkina Faso and neighbouring countries for over a decade and control huge parts of the country. The report is based on analysis of open-source information, including photos, videos and satellite imagery, and interviews with witnesses and survivors.
[paywall]
“All sides are responsible for the war crimes of willful killing, attacks on civilians and civilian objects, pillage and looting, and forced displacement,” the report says. It accuses the junta of committing “horrific abuses” and failing to hold perpetrators to account while blocking reporting to hide the suffering of civilians caught in the violence. “The scale of atrocities taking place in Burkina Faso is mind-boggling, as is the lack of global attention to this crisis,” says Philippe Bolopion, HRW’s executive director.
[/paywall]
All Zim News – Bringing you the latest news and updates.
