Burkina Faso Implements Curfew to Combat Insurgency

In a bid to fight against jihadist insurgents, Burkina Faso has established a curfew across the North and parts of the Centre East region. Official documents seen by AFP on Sunday revealed that the curfew, effective from March 3 to March 31, would be in place from 22:00 to 05:00 and would apply to the entire regional territory. The ban will prohibit the movement of people and the use of two and four-wheeled vehicles overnight.

Kouilga Albert Zongo, the secretary general of the governorate for the North, stated that the curfew would aid the army in the region bordering Mali, where the insurgency has been active since 2015. The military coup in September 2021 and the failure to counter the jihadist insurgency have caused significant instability in the nation, with two coups occurring in 2021.

Jihadist assaults have been increasing in Burkina Faso, leading to dozens of deaths among civilians and members of the security forces every week. In February, an ambush in the far north resulted in 51 deaths, making it the deadliest attack in Burkina Faso.

Moreover, around 40% of the country’s territory lies outside government control, adding to the regional instability. The recent setting ablaze of a police border post on the Niger side of the border has also increased concerns. Local sources have reported that unidentified heavily armed men attacked the station on Saturday, causing substantial material damage. The station had previously been targeted in an attack in December 2021, which left six people dead.

Makalondi, where the police border post is located, is in the tri-border zone near the frontiers with Burkina Faso and Mali and prone to attacks from armed jihadi groups, notably the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara (ISGS

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