Burkina Faso: 60 civilians killed in village raid

Dozens of civilians have been killed in during an attack on a village in northern Burkina Faso, authorities said late on Sunday night.

The attack occurred on Thursday in the village of Karma in Yatenga province, near the border with Mali — an area that has been in the midst of an insurgency led by Islamist groups linked to al-Qaida and the so-called "Islamic State" group.

'About 60 killed'

"About 60 people were killed by people wearing the uniforms of our national armed forces," said Lamine Kabore, a prosecutor in the provincial capital Ouahigouya.

Residents told the AFP news agency that more than 100 people on motorbikes and pickup trucks raided the village during the incident.

Burkina Faso's military junta recently declared a "general mobilization" to combat insurgency that rights groups say has left more than 10,000 people dead over the last decade.

Since 2022, attacks by armed groups on civilians have surged while state security forces and volunteer defense troops have also been accused of human rights violations, according to Human Rights Watch.