Angry protesters attacked the French embassy in the capital Burkina FasoOn Saturday, supporters of the new coup leader in the West African country accused France of harboring the ousted interim president, an accusation strongly denied by the French authorities.
Lieutenant Colonel Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba was ousted late Friday, just nine months following he staged a coup in Burkina Faso, while comments made by a spokesman for the new junta, earlier Saturday, sparked a wave of anger in the capital, Ouagadougou.
Video footage circulated on social media showed residents lighting torches outside the perimeter of the French embassy.
France condemned “in the strongest terms” the attacks once morest its embassy in Burkina Faso, stressing that the “safety of its citizens” is a “priority”.
“We condemn in the strongest terms the acts of violence once morest our embassy,” French Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Anne-Claire Logandren told AFP. “A crisis cell has been formed in Ouagadougou and our teams have been mobilized … for the safety of our citizens, which is our priority.”
Ambiguity prevails in Burkina Faso on Saturday evening regarding who is leading the country, following a statement was issued confirming the existence of a split in the army and the failure of its units to recognize the dismissal of the head of the ruling military council, Henri Sandaogo Damiba.
In the followingnoon, demonstrators targeted two French institutions and set a fire in front of the French embassy in Ouagadougou, and another in front of the French Institute in Bobo Dioulasso, according to witnesses in the western city.
The Foreign Ministry spokeswoman considered these attacks “the creation of hostile demonstrators, who were manipulated through a misinformation campaign once morest us,” stressing that “any prejudice to our diplomatic comparison is unacceptable, and we call on the concerned parties to ensure security in compliance with international covenants.”
She added: “Our citizens received instructions calling on them to be as vigilant and stay at home.”
Damiba’s whereregardings are still unknown, but the French Foreign Ministry issued a strongly worded statement saying: “We officially deny our involvement in the events taking place in Burkina Faso. The camp where the French forces are stationed has never hosted Paul-Henri Sandaugo Damiba, as well as our embassy.”
Officer Brahim Traore, who was named in charge of the country following the coup was announced Friday evening on state television, made it clear in his first interview that he and his men “did not seek to harm Damiba.”
“We don’t want to hurt him, because we don’t have any personal problem with him. We are fighting for Burkina Faso,” Traore told Voice of America.
(Associated Press, AFP)
