DAKAR, Senegal (AP) – Government forces in Burkina Faso are alleged to have killed at least 100 civilians in a brutal assault in March near the western town of Solenzo, according to a new report by Human Rights Watch.
Drawing on survivor testimony and videos circulated on social media, the human rights organisation identified the perpetrators as members of Burkina Faso's special forces, in collaboration with the Volunteers for the Defence of the Homeland—a pro-government militia. The victims were predominantly from the Fulani community, a pastoralist ethnic group historically accused by the government of harbouring sympathies for Islamist militants.
An earlier, inconclusive report had suggested possible government involvement, citing video evidence. In response, the Burkinabè authorities issued a forceful denial, condemning what they termed "fake information" and "images inciting hatred and communal violence" intended to destabilise national cohesion.
However, Human Rights Watch has since corroborated further evidence implicating state forces. “The viral footage from Solenzo shocked the Sahel region, but it revealed only a fraction of the atrocities committed,” said Ilaria Allegrozzi, the organisation's senior Sahel researcher. “Our investigation confirms that these killings were perpetrated by state forces. They were followed by retaliatory attacks by an Islamist armed group, compounding the cycle of violence.”
The rights group is calling on the Burkinabè government to initiate an impartial and transparent investigation and to hold accountable all those responsible, regardless of rank or affiliation.