Wednesday, July 24, 2024

Abidjan, Ivory Coast

The Médecins sans Frontières (MSF) office in Djibo, northern Burkina Faso, was targeted by gunfire on Wednesday, July 18, during an “attack” on the town, which has been encircled by jihadist groups for almost two years, the NGO announced on Thursday.
“The MSF office was the target of repeated gunfire on Wednesday, July 18, 2024 during an attack on the town of Djibo that took place as early as dawn,” the organization explained in a statement.
“The building bears visible bullet holes, medical structures of the Ministry of Health supported by MSF and a water distribution site were vandalized”, continues the NGO, which specifies that its teams and patients are ‘safe and sound’.
MSF, which calls for “respect for humanitarian space” and “condemns this violence”, gave no further details of the attack.
Djibo, close to the so-called three-border zone between Niger, Burkina Faso and Mali, where jihadist groups are active, has been under siege for almost two years.
It is supplied by escorted truck convoys, which are sometimes attacked.
MSF is assessing “the impact of this incident” on its capacity to intervene in the town, and points out that “local and displaced populations are the main victims of insecurity and violence”.

Burkina Faso has been targeted by jihadists for almost ten years.

The authorities have not reported on jihadist attacks for months, but regularly claim to have won victories, even though part of the territory remains out of the army’s control.
The country has drawn closer to its two neighbors, Mali and Niger, which have also been targeted by attacks.
Together, they have formed a confederation known as the Alliance of Sahel States (AES).

Humaniterre with AFP