Burkina Faso’s military junta has arrested three prominent
journalists—Guezouma Sanogo, Boukari Ouoba, and Luc Pagbelguem—amid a
growing clampdown on press freedom, according to Human Rights Watch. The
arrests came after a press conference by the Journalists Association on March 21
denouncing restrictions on the media. The association was dissolved the next day.
The journalists’ current whereabouts are unknown. This development aligns with
a wider repression trend in the Alliance of Sahel States (Burkina Faso, Mali, and
Niger), where military governments have sidelined ECOWAS, embraced Russian
support, and suppressed independent media. HRW notes that many journalists
have fled the country amid threats of imprisonment, torture, and forced
conscription. The environment for press freedom has deteriorated drastically,
with only state-aligned narratives remaining.
General News
Mass Rally in Burkina Faso Backs President Traoré Amid U.S. Criticism
Thousands gathered in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso’s capital, to support
transitional President Captain Ibrahim Traoré following critical remarks from U.S.
Africa Command’s General Michaël Langley. Langley accused Traoré of
exploiting the nation’s mining resources for the junta’s benefit rather than for the
people. Protesters, including artist Ocibi Joan, condemned the comments as lies
and defended the country’s right to manage its own resources. Demonstrators
vowed to protect Traoré, drawing comparisons to past assassinations like that of
Captain Thomas Sankara. The rally followed the announcement of a thwarted coup
plot and was attended by officials, including Prime Minister Jean Emmanuel
Ouédraogo, who called for national sovereignty and liberation across the Sahel.
Courts Rule on Tidjane Thiam
The courts have ruled that Tidjane Thiam lost his Ivorian nationality when he acquired French citizenship in 1987, his lawyer said Tuesday. Soon to be removed from the electoral roll, the opposition leader will no longer be able to run in the presidential election scheduled for six months from now.
54 Beninese soldiers killed
54 Beninese soldiers were killed and more than a dozen others injured in two simultaneous jihadist attacks in northern Benin on Thursday, April 17. The attacks took place in the so-called “Triple Point” region, where the Beninese army had already been the target of a particularly deadly assault on January 8.
The government of Benin has confirmed that 54 soldiers were killed in a deadly attack by suspected jihadist insurgents.
Government spokesman Wilfried Leandre Houngbedji announced the revised the death toll during a press briefing on Wednesday, April 22,2025 significantly raising the earlier count of eight fatalities.