Death toll rises to 24 in Burkina Faso church attack

By Felix Tih

ANKARA (AA) - At least 24 people were killed and 18 others injured after gunmen attacked a church in northern Burkina Faso, the region's governor said on Monday.

"The provisional death toll shows 24 people murdered, including the pastor of a Protestant church. We also deplore 18 injured and abducted people," local media quoted Colonel Salfo Kabore, governor of the Sahel region, as saying.

Unidentified armed men attacked the church in Yagha province in the Sahel Region during a religious ceremony on Sunday.

"The injured were evacuated to Sebba and Dori for appropriate care...," Kabore added.

Burkina Faso is witnessing a rapidly deteriorating humanitarian emergency.

In October 2019, over 486,000 internally displaced people were registered, more than twice of the July 2019 figure. The Centre-Nord and Sahel regions in Burkina Faso are the most-affected, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

A state of emergency in northern Burkina Faso which ended on Jan. 12 was extended for another year to boost the fight against terrorism.

It is currently being implemented in seven of 13 regions in the country.