It doesnt have the military base on the ground. Mr Cond was elected as the first democratic head of state in 2010 but became increasingly autocratic, altering the constitution to allow himself to run for a third term in 2020 and jailing a growing number of opponents. During the attempted coup in 2015, the RSP attempted to shut down private radio, television, and news sources. We dont want France anymore, said one, Omar Ouedraogo. His downfall last September, at the hands of soldiers promising an inclusive transition to genuine democracy, met with an almost universal welcome among Guineans; there was barely a hint of regret even from his own political party. Why Now? Although the French have no such presence in Burkina Faso, criticism of the former colonizers has spread throughout the arid region known as the Sahel, much of which has been destabilized in recent years by extremist groups tapping into local grievances. And its really interesting in Russian propaganda movies that target an African audience. The main eastern highway to the city of Fada Ngourma and, beyond that, the border with Niger, is no longer safe. I am from a generation for whom one of the great political memories was the victory of Nelson Mandela. Burkina Faso military coup: How the world reacted - Al Jazeera Burkina Faso coup: Why soldiers have overthrown President Kabor The role of the army in a democracy is to ensure the defense of the territory, the protection of institutions, and an unconditional submission to the legitimate civilian political authority.. Newsreel: The soldiers work for the government here. The citizens of Burkina Faso have been struggling, but so far nothing is improving. First plane evacuating French citizens leaves Niger six days after coup Nicolas Haque: The dangers in Burkina Faso is internal fighting. Young people, in particular, had lost faith in the president as unceasing attacks by Islamist militants killed thousands and displaced more than a million of their fellow citizens. Opponents of PresidentRoch Marc Christian Kabor of Burkina Faso set afire his party headquarters in Ouagadougou on Sunday. Read about our approach to external linking. Burkina Faso country profile - BBC News Nicolas Haque: I mean, it is astonishing for me to see Macron, a couple of years ago, people waving French flags when he came in town. The revolutions main objective, Mr. Sankara said not long after taking power, is to destroy imperialist domination and exploitation.. Ibrahim Traor. Nearly two million people have fled their homes, and many more are going hungry. The unsuccessful rebellion claimed the life of Lamin Sanneh, the purported ringleader, who had earned a masters degree at National Defense University in Washington, D.C. I cant shake the feeling that his education in the United States somehow influenced his actions,wroteSannehs former NDU mentor Jeffrey Meiser. must have connections with the old regime, but also with Gilbert Diendr, Mr. Koalaga said. It doesnt have the history. We are saved! he declared. Burkina Faso this week joined a list of countries that have recently experienced military takeovers most plagued by insecurity, poor governance and frustrated youth.. He now lives in Dakar, Senegal. ECOWAS has taken a harder stance on Niger's July 26 coup, the region's seventh in three years, than it has on previous ones in Mali, Burkina Faso and Guinea. Tim St. Clair mixed this episode. Public support for the mutiny was driven by a perception that Mr. Kabor was incapable of beating back the Islamist groups that have been spreading mayhem for so long, said Rinaldo Depagne, an expert on Burkina Faso at the International Crisis Group. He renamed the country from Upper Volta, as France called it, to Burkina Faso, which means the land of upright people in Moore, the language of the countrys largest ethnic group. And he told me straight off, I told him, Whats your interest here? There have been recent coups in the region: Mali, Guinea and Chad. And at the root of why theres dysfunctioning democracies in the region is this key issue. Over the past year, Africa has experienced a surge in military takeovers and a marked backslide in democracy, with coups in at least four countries. There are people from Nigeria, from the local area, but it is an international, global organisation that has control over vast swath land, in the tri-border area of Burkina Faso, Niger and Mali. Ibrahim Traore (center) at a press conference in Ouagadougou on October 2, 2022. According to Paul Koalaga, the director of the Institute for Strategy and International Relations in the countrys capital, Ouagadougou, Colonel Damibas loyalties may still lie with the former president, Mr. Compaor, and his allies. Since the 2000s, the United States has regularly deployed small teams of commandos to advise, assist, and accompany local forces, even into battle; provided weapons, equipment, and aircraft; offered many forms of training, including Flintlock, which is conducted by Special Operations Command Africa and focused on enhancing the counterterrorism capabilities of nations in West Africa, including Burkina Faso, Guinea, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, and Senegal. The country has been fractured, he said. Perhaps the most notable leadership change recently was the one in Sudan, where a coup last fall halted a democratic transition that followed the 2019 ouster of the countrys longtime autocratic ruler, Omar Hassan al-Bashir. Niger coup: What is Russia's role? - DW - 08/10/2023 It was not long before the mutineers began to make their demands known. Well be back on Friday. A former French colony, it gained independence as Upper Volta in . The first, in Burundi, took place in May and lasted less than a day. Burkina Faso: A once-stable West African nation now prone to violence. A senior French official, who asked not to be named because he was not allowed to comment on developments in Burkina Faso, said there was no clear evidence that Russia or Wagner Group were involved in the weekends coup. In April 2021, Chad followed the same path. A 2018 study by the militarys go-to think tank, the Rand Corporation, cast doubt on the notion that U.S. military training breeds coup-makers. Twitter DAKAR, Senegal Military officers announced late on Friday that they had taken power in the West African nation of Burkina Faso, in what appeared to be the second coup in eight . Niger coup: Burkina Faso, Mali deploy war planes after ECOWAS threat - MSN West Africa's latest successful coup, in Burkina Faso on 24 January 2022, has renewed unease about coups "returning" and democracies "dying" in Africa. Three weeks into the coup in Niger, the military junta continues to cling to power while West African army chiefs held a second day of talks on Friday in Ghana's capital, Accra, where . The militarys announcement came after a turbulent day in Burkina Faso. The insecurity wrought by these groups and other criminal opportunists, has grown exponentially over the last five years. I mean, an incredible moment that you wouldve never imagined. Colonel Damiba initially refused to relinquish power and, in a post to Facebook on Friday, warned of a fratricidal war if Captain Traor did not back down. Chances of a coup again, is highly likely, but chances of greater instability is even more likely. Original reporting. And, and so he opened the door to a broader discussion, to criticism. The next year, another coup in Burkina Faso installed Gen. Gilbert Diendr. Mr Kabor was elected in November 2015, in the wake of a people-power revolution that had turfed out the previous authoritarian regime. Leading African political figures also deplored the Burkina Faso coup. Mostly children are refugees in this country. But factions of the military grew frustrated with his handling of a security crisis plaguing the West African nation. The streamers making big money by filming themselves sleeping, Four scientifically-proven ways to live longer. But that year, militant groups launched a violent campaign as part of a broader upheaval in the Sahel, the vast stretch of land just south of the Sahara. Nicolas Haque: And we met the special adviser to the president, President Touadera. Nairobi . Halla Mohieddeen: The discontent over the states inability to deal with the fighters in the north isnt limited to the general population, but within the military, as well. So as Abdoulaye Diop, the foreign minister of Mali, told me once, its a win-win situation for the Russians and for these countries in the Sahel. Earlier this month, at least 35 civilians were killed after a convoy of vehicles hit a roadside bomb. This episode was produced by Ashish Malhotra with Negin Owliaei, Ruby Zaman, Amy Walters, Chloe K. Li, Alexandra Locke, and me, Halla Mohieddeen. by its French initials), was one of the pillars of Mr. Compaors regime, but was disbanded after his fall in 2014. He knows what hes up against. Burkina Faso and Mali have deployed war planes to Niger Republic following the Economic Community of West Africa possible armed intervention to restore democracy in Niger Republic.Niger television . With junta representatives dominating the proceedings, it was little surprise that Traor was designated as the transitional president and that the junta retained significant authority in the transitional governing charter. Among the customers at the cellphone market was Anatole Compaor, an unemployed 31-year-old. Burkina Faso, a landlocked country of 22 million people and one of the continents biggest cotton producers, traditionally prided itself on a national spirit of peace, tolerance and integration. Halla Mohieddeen: From the outside looking in, two coups in such a short space of time might seem hard to comprehend. The leader of a coup in Burkina Faso is the latest in a line of U.S.-trained soldiers who overturned civilian leaders. Something French President Emmanuel Macron has tried to tackle since his election in 2017. This episode was produced by Ashish Malhotra with Amy Walters, Negin Owliaei, Ruby Zaman, Chloe K. Li, Alexandra Locke, and Halla Mohieddeen. Extremists, vigilantes and soldiers have killed civilians. Chad, Guinea, Mali and Sudan soldiers have seized power in all of them. I think that weve perhaps underestimated how savvy and smart, the local fighters from al-Qaeda and ISIL are. Its to come closer and closer to the capital, Ouagadougou. military training regularly includes modules on the law of armed conflict, subjugation to civilian control, and respect for human rights, AFRICOM spokesperson Kelly Cahalan told The Intercept. By The Numbers: Coups in Africa VOA Special Report Instead of uniting people, Roch divided them, which allowed the jihadists to attack us. Traor was a participant in the January coup and was aided in the latest putsch by several members of Damibas junta. Aya Elmileik and Adam Abou-Gad are the Takes engagement producers. And put them in an African context. In 2020, Col. Assimi Gota, who worked with U.S. Special Operations forces for years, participating in Flintlock training exercises and attending a Joint Special Operations University seminar at MacDill Air Force Base in Florida, headed the junta that overthrew Malis government. The army officer who appears to be in charge now had just been promoted. DAKAR, Senegal The army officer who seized power over Burkina Faso in a coup in January conceded on Sunday that he too had been ousted by mutinying soldiers, capping two days of unrest and plunging the West African country again into uncertainty about its political future. What's behind the coup in Burkina Faso? | DW News - YouTube The coup-installed governments in Mali and Burkina-Faso have said they supported . Earlier this month, the government arrested a dozen soldiers on suspicion of conspiring against the government. In the latest setback for democracy in Africa, a military coup has removed the democratically elected president of Burkina Faso. They dont even mention France. Nicolas Haque: Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of ISIL before his death when he saw the territory being destroyed in Syria and in Iraq, had said that they will regroup in Africa. On Tuesday, 11 soldiers were killed and dozens of civilians went missing when insurgents attacked a convoy bringing supplies to a town in the countrys north, Djibo, which has lived under a blockade by extremists for month. And in recent months, Burkina Faso was already looking like it might be next, with the countrys government destabilized by a wave of Islamist violence that has intensified over the past years in the Sahel, the semi-arid region stretching from Senegal to Chad on the southern flank of the Sahara. Millions of citizens in West Africa, the focus of a recent rash of coups and coup attempts, have become familiar with such seizures of power. Tim St. Clair mixed this episode. Aug. 18, 2023. America is a great country with a fantastic army, he said after the 2012 coup. Are the constitutions or the democratic institutions that were copy and pasted or imported from France, do they function in a West African or a Burkinabe society? Burkina Faso suffered its second coup of the year when Captain Ibrahim Traor, the 34-year-old head of an artillery unit of the Armed Forces of Burkina Faso, declared himself head of state on September 30. The coup also came in the wake of recent coups in nearby countries, such as in Guinea, Mali, and Sudan in 2021, and two in Burkina Faso in January and September 2022, which has led to the region being called a "coup belt". Burkina Faso attack: 11 soldiers killed in ambush - BBC News All have had this almost like copy-pasted. Mr. Dujarric made note of the epidemic of coups in Africa in recent times, referring to upheavals in Chad, Guinea, Mali and Sudan. More recently, a . Mr. Keita died earlier this month. Traor then named a 23-member government that included three military officers and five officials who served in Damibas government. Angered by the ineffective response of his government, Amadou Sanogo an officer who learned English in Texas, received intelligence training in Arizona, and underwent Army infantry-officer basic training in Georgia took matters into his own hands and overthrew his countrys democratically elected government. Not just Burkina Faso, but all other countries in the region where theres been coups. Halla Mohieddeen: There is historical baggage with France, but it also looks like theres a couple of other major players who are looking for influence. A 71-member transitional legislature to draft the electoral laws and other legal guidelines during the transitional period. And that gives you a premise of what Traore is all about. He joined The Times in 2017 and was previously based in Paris and London. After rumblings of military discontent over recent weeks, soldiers in key bases in the capital finally mutinied on Sunday, unrest that by late the next day had developed into a full-scale coup. Burkina Faso Coup Military Seizes Power in Burkina Faso - The New York VideoFour scientifically-proven ways to live longer. Niger coup leader proposes a three-year transition of power The coup in Burkina Faso was announced on state television late Monday afternoon by a junior army officer who said the army had seized power in response to the exasperation of the people. Beside him sat Lt. Col. Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba, a senior military officer who was introduced to the people of Burkina Faso as their new head of state. The regional organization known as ECOWAS, the Economic Community of West African States, said that the coup cannot be tolerated, and called for the soldiers to return to their barracks. No timeline was provided. Halla Mohieddeen: So what are the conditions that have led to two coups in eight months? The coups that marked African politics in the 1970s and 1980s had been beginning to look like largely a thing of the past. Following the military takeover in Burkina Faso, regional analyst Paul Melly considers why West Africa is seeing a new wave of coups after democracy had seemingly become entrenched in the region. Niger's President Mohamed Bazoum has launched a major drive to persuade villagers to return to the home areas from which they had fled because of the violence, but supported now with a reinforced military presence, and the restoration of local public services and development programmes. As gunfire rang out earlier on Friday and the state television channel went off the air in Ouagadougou, the capital, the president, Lt. Col. Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba, who led the previous coup in January, had tried to reassure citizens that he was still in control. And it is not improving because daily people are being killed. Something Nic says is getting lost in a lot of the coverage about the country. Fans rejoice in Madrid as Spain makes history, 25 great images from the Women's World Cup 2023. It called for a civilian-led transition, stating that: Traors actions since taking power reveal little strategic planning beyond installing himself as president and further entrenching military rule in a country that is still emerging from the 27-year military-turned-authoritarian government of Blaise Compaor, which was finally forced from power in 2014. . The remarks mirrored the rhetoric in neighboring Mali, which the French military quit last month after nine years fighting Islamist militants. Traor called on senior ministry bureaucrats to keep the day-to-day operations of government functioning. Oumar Zombre contributed reporting from Ouagadougou. By January, citizens were so unhappy with the countrys direction that many welcomed its new military rulers with joy. Members of the military announcing the takeover on state television on Monday. But the situation changed after a jihadist uprising in Mali that began in 2013 spread to its neighbors, including Burkina Faso. Traor justified his coup by claiming he would restore security and turn the tide of conflict. Nicolas Haque: Captain Ibrahim Traore, is in his 30s. Many people in Burkina Faso welcomed the January coup, hoping it would help bring change in a nation that, like several of its neighbors, has suffered devastating attacks in recent years. Some in Burkina Faso have welcomed the military takeover, Some in Burkina Faso want Russian forces to replace the French - as they have in Mali, About 1.5 million people have been forced to flee their homes in Burkina Faso because of the insurgency. But this time around, in Burkina Faso, the timetable has telescoped. Traors junta hastily organized a 2-day national forum on October 14 and 15. More gunfire erupted around the presidents residence in the capital before dawn Monday, and soldiers spilled from their military bases and seized control of the state broadcaster. Burkina Faso and 5 Other Coups in Africa, Explained - The New York Times Everyone is safe and sound, he said at a news briefing at U.N. headquarters. Captain Ibrahim Traore has. In the short term, this weekends coup is likely to worsen a dire security and humanitarian situation in Burkina Faso, where nearly 10 percent of the population has been displaced because of violence carried out by Islamist extremists. A wave of anti-French sentiment has spread across West Africa in recent years, and some factions of Burkina Fasos military felt Colonel Damiba was too close to France. And despite the presence of the French military, these coups keep on happening, which suggests to the population that sometimes, rightly or wrongly, the French are involved, are meddling into the countrys affair. Mr. Sankara was 37 when he was killed, and already revered in many African countries for speaking out against the vestiges of colonialism and the impact of Western financial institutions like the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. Captain Traor had accused France, the countrys former colonial power, of helping Colonel Damiba stage a comeback and protecting him at the its embassy or at a base where French special forces are posted. The United States called on those responsible to de-escalate the situation, prevent harm to citizens and soldiers, and return to a constitutional order, according to a statement on Saturday from the State Departments spokesman, Ned Price. It also does these productions. Until the members of the transitional legislature are named and the legislative session opened, Traor legislates by decree. Can you just talk to us a little bit about that dynamic? On Thursday, he had given a speech in Djibo, in Burkina Faso's volatile north. Just the last two years has been incredible to see how much theyve gained and how brazen their attacks have been. Since then, the landlocked country of 21 million people has faced hundreds of attacks, some carried out by jihadist groups and others by local rebels. In fact, under Colonel Damiba, jihadists took control of large new swaths of territory and blockaded key towns, said Abdul Zanya Salifu, a scholar at the University of Calgary who focuses on the Sahel. Mali had two coups or attempts in a nine-month span. It was not possible to confirm whether this group of officers had gained complete control of the government, or the whereabouts of Colonel Damiba. (Photos: AFP). But in reality, the news of one murderous attack after another, claiming the lives of villagers, local security volunteers or soldiers and gendarmes, fuels a mood of fear and perhaps almost helplessness that can undermine army loyalties anyway. Photo: Olympia de Maismont/AFP via Getty Images. Almost all countries were at least formally democratic, even if some elected presidents, once in office, twisted the rules to perpetuate their stay in power. And its happening. Because if he can get these countries support in the short run and in the long run, that gives Russia and Vladimir Putin a lot more sway on the ground. In 2013, Damiba was accepted into an Africa Contingency Operations Training and Assistance course, which is a State Department-funded peacekeeping training program. But it brought no halt to the expansion of the map of rural violence. A supply convoy escorted by the army travelling to. The vast majority are in this town of Kaya. Lt. Col. Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba, who has led the junta ruling the country since the January coup, officially resigned on Sunday after the military assured his security, according to a statement released by religious and community leaders acting as mediators. As the attacks intensified despite the French presence, so did Malians condemnation of their military partner. Ibrahim Traor was now in power. Its his fault.. 34-year-old Army captain Ibrahim Traore is Burkina Fasos new leader.
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