Burkina Faso Declares Two Days Of Mourning After 41 People Killed In Terrorist Attack
Ouagadougou, Dec 26: Burkina Faso declared on Sunday a 48-hour mourning for the victims of a massive terrorist attack that killed 41 pro-government militia and civilians in the northern province of Loroum earlier this week.
This past Thursday, a column of VDP militia, who are trained by the government to fight Islamist groups, was ambushed while patrolling the Loroum province. It was one of the largest single-day losses for the VDP.
“A national mourning period of 48 hours will commence on Sunday, 26 December … and shall be observed by the whole nation in memory of the victims of the attack carried out by a terrorist group on Thursday, 23 December 2021, against the VDP and civilians in the area of You in Loroum Province in the Nord Region,” government spokesperson Alkassoum Maiga said in a press release.
The Burkinabe government expressed its condolences to the families of the victims and strongly condemned the “barbaric” attack.
During the mourning, national flags will be downed on all public buildings in Burkina Faso and diplomatic buildings abroad, and entertainment events will be canceled.
Another large-scale terrorist attack on the Burkinabe military police killed 53 on November 17.