French Embassy in Burkina Faso currently under attack

This is ongoing news and started an hour or two ago :

The capital of Burkina Faso came under multiple attacks on Friday which targeted the French embassy, the French cultural centre and the country's military headquarters, an AFP reporter and witnesses said.

Witnesses said five armed men got out of a car and opened fire on passersby before heading towards the embassy in the centre of the city.

An AFP reporter heard heavy exchanges of gunfire and saw a blazing vehicle, which witnesses said was the car used by the assailants. Police and army units were deployed in the area.

More here : www.france24.com...

It was not clear who was behind the violence but Burkina Faso and other West African countries have been targeted by jihadist groups linked to al Qaeda and Islamic State in the past few years.

A local news station showed pictures of black smoke coming from a building in central Ouagadougou and a Reuters correspondent found that most people had fled the streets.

“Attack under way at the French Embassy and French Institute. Stay hidden where you are,” the embassy said in a statement posted on its Facebook site.

A French official in Paris confirmed that an assault against the embassy was under way, as well as against the Burkina Faso army headquarters.

An explosion rocked the army headquarters and then gunfire rang out in the vicinity. A witness said masked gunmen with backpacks had attacked the army headquarters shortly before the explosion.

Link : www.reuters.com...

Stay safe to anyone located in that area.

Kindest respects

Lags

It's been pretty quiet on the terrorism front lately.

Looks like they are coming back with a bang..

Looks like some Spring Cleaning. Bless their hearts. Shopping time....?

originally posted by: Plotus
Looks like some Spring Cleaning. Bless their hearts. Shopping time....?

I'm glad you can find levity in the death of people. charming...

from the article.

Deadly jihadist insurgency

Burkina Faso is one of a string of fragile countries on the southern rim of the Sahara that are battling jihadist groups.

The insurgency has caused thousands of deaths, prompted tens of thousands to flee their homes and dealt crippling blows to economies that are already among the poorest in the world.

On August 13 last year, two assailants opened fire on a restaurant on Ouagadougou's main avenue, killing 19 people and wounded 21. The attack remains unclaimed.

On January 15 2016, 30 people, including six Canadians and five Europeans, were killed in a jihadist attack on a hotel and restaurant in the city centre.

Responsiblity was claimed by a group called Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM).

So we pretty much already know who is responsible.

Yay the piece of religion that just no one wants to touch.

a reply to: Jefferton

Either that or the governments have to reinforce the faceless threat theology to keep the masses under control. I realised a few days ago that almost all the threats of the last few decades the threats and attacks have been by groups that Western governments actually helped or even created at some point and now say they're the enemy.

Little update :

Four of the people attacking the French embassy and three of those attacking the army headquarters have been killed, Burkinabé government sources said, although reports varied.

"The situation is under control at French diplomatic premises [in Ouagadougou]," a foreign ministry source in Paris said after the attack.

Link : www.france24.com...

For the moment no news on how many innocents were killed or injured.

Warmest respects

Lags

a reply to: Lagomorphe

Thank you for keeping us informed

Just why are they attacking the French embassy? They have been independent from France since the 1960s. They rule themselves so why just the French?

originally posted by: badw0lf

originally posted by: Plotus
Looks like some Spring Cleaning. Bless their hearts. Shopping time....?

Yay the piece of religion that just no one wants to touch.

Ummm...are you sure that's the piece of religion...or the religion of peace...?

It's ever so hard to keep up...





YouSir

originally posted by: YouSir

originally posted by: badw0lf

originally posted by: Plotus
Looks like some Spring Cleaning. Bless their hearts. Shopping time....?

Yay the piece of religion that just no one wants to touch.

Ummm...are you sure that's the piece of religion...or the religion of peace...?

It's ever so hard to keep up...

YouSir

It's never safe to say.

But I fear we both know the pieces of peace we need to fear

originally posted by: badw0lf

originally posted by: YouSir

originally posted by: badw0lf

originally posted by: Plotus
Looks like some Spring Cleaning. Bless their hearts. Shopping time....?

Yay the piece of religion that just no one wants to touch.

Ummm...are you sure that's the piece of religion...or the religion of peace...?

It's ever so hard to keep up...

YouSir

It's never safe to say.

But I fear we both know the pieces of peace we need to fear

Sorry folks, I have been away this weekend without internet access.

Little update :

The jihadist Group to Support Islam and Muslims (JSIM) has claimed responsibility for the twin attacks in Burkina Faso, in a message cited Saturday by Mauritania's Al-Akhbar news agency.

The group, led by the Malian jihadist Iyad Ag Ghaly, said it carried out the attacks on the French embassy and Burkina Faso's military HQ in the capital Ouagadougou on Friday, which left eight soldiers dead.

News sources over here in France are saying that over 30 people were killed and 20 assailants too (although to be confirmed)

Link : www.france24.com...

Kindest respects

Lags

originally posted by: crayzeed
Just why are they attacking the French embassy? They have been independent from France since the 1960s. They rule themselves so why just the French?

Mali?

originally posted by: Jefferton
It's been pretty quiet on the terrorism front lately.

Looks like they are coming back with a bang..

just because you haven't heard about it doesn't mean it doesn't exist

originally posted by: crayzeed
Just why are they attacking the French embassy? They have been independent from France since the 1960s. They rule themselves so why just the French?

This might help you a little :

There was no immediate claim of responsibility. A 2016 attack in the city was claimed by al-Qaeda which said it was a reprisal for Burkina Faso’s participation in a regional military campaign against Islamists. Thirty people including six Canadians and five Europeans were killed in a subsequent attack on a Ouagadougou restaurant last year.

France, the former colonial power, has deployed 4,000 troops to fight jihadists in the impoverished Sahel region on the southern rim of the Sahara alongside soldiers from Burkina Faso and four other west African countries. The UN also has a 12,000-strong peacekeeping force based in neighbouring Mali.

The Islamist insurgency has claimed thousands of lives and forced tens of thousands of people to flee from their homes.

Burkina Faso is notoriously unstable and its long-serving president was ousted in an uprising in 2014.

Link : www.telegraph.co.uk...

Kindest respects

Lags