Burkina Faso: 4 Killed in Church Attack
Four people have been killed and several others injured after a group of eight gunmen attacked a church on Sunday, 26 May, in northern Burkina Faso.
According to a security source, “heavily armed individuals” attacked the parishioners who were celebrating mass at a church in Toulfe, a town located 240 kilometres northwest of the capital, Ouagadougou.
A local resident who witnessed the shooting said: “[The attack] caused panic in the village, and many residents sought cover in their homes or in the bush.”
Justin Kientega, bishop of Ouahigouya, confirmed the number of fatalities in a statement and labelled the shooting as a “terrorist attack.”
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, which comes two weeks after a Catholic priest and five parishioners were shot dead by gunmen in the northern town of Dablo on 12 May.
Burkina Faso – of which the population is around two-thirds Muslim and one-third Christian – has become a hotspot for active jihadist groups. Since 2015, over 400 fatalities as a result of terrorist attacks occurring in the country have been recorded.
