عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
World

French Troops Kill over 20 Extremists in Burkina Faso

Extremists have increased attacks in Burkina Faso’s Sahel region, also shifting to the forested east near the Niger border. (File/AFP)
Extremists have increased attacks in Burkina Faso’s Sahel region, also shifting to the forested east near the Niger border. (File/AFP)
TT
TT

French Troops Kill over 20 Extremists in Burkina Faso

Extremists have increased attacks in Burkina Faso’s Sahel region, also shifting to the forested east near the Niger border. (File/AFP)
Extremists have increased attacks in Burkina Faso’s Sahel region, also shifting to the forested east near the Niger border. (File/AFP)

More than 20 militants have been killed by French troops this month in Burkina Faso near the border with troubled Mali, the French military said Thursday.

One of the poorest countries in the world, Burkina Faso is struggling with a ruthless insurgency by armed militants who swept in from neighboring Mali in 2015.

Almost 1,100 people have died and more than a million people have fled their homes.

French Tigre helicopters on Saturday "neutralized" a "suspicious convoy of 30 motorcycles" on Burkinabe territory near the Mali town of Boulikessi in which some 10 extremists were killed, said Colonel Frederic Barbry, spokesman for the French defense staff.

The same day, a French drone struck a four-wheel drive vehicle heading for Mali, he said.

On Sunday, French helicopters fired on a convoy of 40 motorbikes "allowing us to stop the convoy and neutralize more than 10 armed terrorists and destroy about 10 motorbikes," Barbry added.

France has deployed troops in the region to fight extremists.

Most Viewed

 
 
World

Supporters of Pakistan's Imran Khan Call off Protest

Policemen fire tear gas shells to disperse supporters of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party during a protest to demand the release of former prime minister Imran Khan, in Islamabad on November 26, 2024. (Photo by Aamir QURESHI / AFP)
Policemen fire tear gas shells to disperse supporters of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party during a protest to demand the release of former prime minister Imran Khan, in Islamabad on November 26, 2024. (Photo by Aamir QURESHI / AFP)
TT
TT

Supporters of Pakistan's Imran Khan Call off Protest

Policemen fire tear gas shells to disperse supporters of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party during a protest to demand the release of former prime minister Imran Khan, in Islamabad on November 26, 2024. (Photo by Aamir QURESHI / AFP)
Policemen fire tear gas shells to disperse supporters of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party during a protest to demand the release of former prime minister Imran Khan, in Islamabad on November 26, 2024. (Photo by Aamir QURESHI / AFP)

Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan's party suspended street protests demanding his release from jail after a sweeping midnight raid by security forces in the capital Islamabad in which hundreds of people were arrested, local media reported on Wednesday.
Broadcaster Geo News, citing a Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) statement, said the party had announced a "temporary suspension" of the protest, in which at least six people, including four paramilitary soldiers and two protesters, have been killed.
A PTI spokesperson did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Thousands of protesters had gathered in the center of Islamabad on Tuesday after a convoy, led by Khan's wife Bushra Bibi, broke through several lines of security all the way to the edge of the city's highly fortified red zone.
Geo News and broadcaster ARY both reported that a massive raid was launched by security forces in a pitch-dark central Islamabad, where lights had been turned off and a barrage of teargas was fired. The protest gathering was almost completely dispersed, they reported.
On Wednesday morning, city workers were cleaning up debris and clearing some of the shipping containers that had blocked roads around the capital. The heavily fortified red zone was empty of protesters but several of their vehicles were left behind, including the remains of a truck from which Bushra Bibi had been leading the protests that appeared charred by flames, according to Reuters witnesses.
PTI had planned on staging a sit-in in the red zone until the release of Khan, who has been in jail since August last year.
PTI's president for the city of Peshawar in the party's northern stronghold of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, said the party had called off the protest.
"We will chalk out the new strategy later after proper consultation,” Mohammad Asim told Reuters.
He said that Bushra Bibi as well as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur, a key Khan ally, had returned "safely" to the province from the capital.
Pakistan's benchmark share index jumped more than 4% in intraday trade on Wednesday, recovering losses made on Tuesday when the index closed 3.6% down over the news of political clashes.
"With valuations remaining highly attractive, we expect the positive momentum to continue going forward," said Tahir Abbas, head of research at Arif Habib Limited, adding that the sharp rebound in the market was due to hopes of political stability restoring investor confidence.