Police in Burkina Faso have fired tear gas at protesters protesting the government’s failure to curb the rise of Islamist violence.
Others built fences and burned tires as riots broke out on the streets of the capital, Ouagadougou.
Authorities shut down the internet and sent hundreds of police to block the rally.
Anger is growing against the government and French troops who support the Burkinabe army.
Hundreds of people took part in Saturday’s protests organized by the so-called 27 November Coalition and demanded the resignation of the president.
“We are refusing to dump Burkina Faso. We will appoint a person with the ability to ensure national security,” one critic told the Associated Press.
A small child was injured after soldiers fired tear gas, the AFP news agency reported.
Local media outlets Pomega and Filipfos said two of their reporters were also injured in tear gas.
A November 27 Union spokesman also said “a significant number of casualties”, including two who fainted. It was not immediately possible to confirm the claim.
Violence has been rampant since the beginning of November, when several security forces were killed.
The worst was on November 14 when 53 military officers and four civilians were killed during a shooting spree in Inata North.
Following reports that the police were short of food in preparation for the attack, President Roch Kaboré announced the “changes that have taken place” within the military, and ordered the “immediate and effective” presence of military leaders in the future. line.
The Sahel region, Africa’s arid region, has been plagued by terrorists since the invasion of northern Mali in 2012 and 2013.
In Burkina Faso, violence has forced more than a million people to flee their homes in the past two years.
Source link
