Suspected jihadists have killed about a dozen villagers and wounded several more in western Burkina Faso, security and local sources told AFP on Saturday.
“Overnight (Friday-Saturday) armed people attacked the village of Sara,” 100 kilometres (60 miles) from Burkina’s second city Bobo-Dioulasso, the security source said.
“Unfortunately we have a dozen dead and several wounded.”
A villager, asking not to be named, said, “Nine bodies were buried this Saturday. But two people also died of their wounds, making a total of 11 dead.”
A second resident said the “terrorists” attacked at 8:00 pm (2000 GMT).
“They opened fire on a group of people. Some were mortally wounded inside their homes and others injured,” he added.
Another security source said following the shooting, a search operation had been launched in the area and “other regions targeted by the armed groups”.
The army said that on Wednesday in the east of Burkina, near Kompienga, troops who came under fire shot dead about 15 “terrorists”.
One of the poorest and most troubled countries in the world, Burkina is struggling with a jihadist insurgency that swept in from neighbouring Mali in 2015.
Nearly a third of the country lies outside state control, according to the government.
More than 10,000 civilians, troops and police have died, according to an NGO count, while at least two million people have been displaced.
Anger within the military at failures to roll back the insurgency sparked two coups last year.