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| At least 17 dead in attack on restaurant in Burkina Faso | At least 17 dead in attack on restaurant in Burkina Faso |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Suspected Islamist extremists have killed at least 17 people after opening fire on a restaurant popular with foreigners in the Burkina Faso capital of Ouagadougou. | Suspected Islamist extremists have killed at least 17 people after opening fire on a restaurant popular with foreigners in the Burkina Faso capital of Ouagadougou. |
| There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the violence on Sunday, which continued into the early hours of Monday with another heavy exchange of gunfire overheard by witnesses. | There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the violence on Sunday, which continued into the early hours of Monday with another heavy exchange of gunfire overheard by witnesses. |
| Remi Dandjinou, the country’s communications minister, told journalists it was a “terror attack” and that at least 17 people were dead and eight others wounded, according to a provisional toll. | Remi Dandjinou, the country’s communications minister, told journalists it was a “terror attack” and that at least 17 people were dead and eight others wounded, according to a provisional toll. |
| Security forces killed at least three attackers, he said, but people remained inside the building which housed the upmarket Turkish restaurant, Aziz Istanbul. One soldier said there were hostages on the first and second floor of the two-storey building. | |
| The victims came from several different nationalities, Dandjinou said, but at least one of the dead was a French national. | |
| A paramedic told Agence France-Presse that one of the victims was Turkish. “We evacuated 11 people but one of them, a Turk, died on arriving at hospital,” the paramedic said, declining to be named. | |
| Police evacuated civilians from the area before launching the counter-assault, with the heavy exchange of fire becoming more sporadic as the operation went on. | |
| The French embassy in Ouagadougou said it was in contact with the local authorities and advised French people to avoid the area around the restaurant, Reuters reported. | The French embassy in Ouagadougou said it was in contact with the local authorities and advised French people to avoid the area around the restaurant, Reuters reported. |
| A woman said she was in the restaurant celebrating her brother’s birthday when the shooting started. “I just ran but my brother was left inside,” the woman told Reuters. | A woman said she was in the restaurant celebrating her brother’s birthday when the shooting started. “I just ran but my brother was left inside,” the woman told Reuters. |
| Security forces arrived at the scene with armoured vehicles after reports of shots fired near the restaurant in Ouagadougou. The attack brought back painful memories of the January 2016 attack at another cafe that left 30 people dead. | Security forces arrived at the scene with armoured vehicles after reports of shots fired near the restaurant in Ouagadougou. The attack brought back painful memories of the January 2016 attack at another cafe that left 30 people dead. |
| Burkina Faso, a landlocked nation in west Africa, is one of the poorest countries in the world. It shares a northern border with Mali, which has long battled Islamic extremists. | Burkina Faso, a landlocked nation in west Africa, is one of the poorest countries in the world. It shares a northern border with Mali, which has long battled Islamic extremists. |
| The three attackers in the 2016 massacre were of foreign origin, according to al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb, which claimed responsibility in the aftermath along with the jihadist group known as Al Mourabitoun. But the terror threat in Burkina Faso is increasingly homegrown, experts say. | The three attackers in the 2016 massacre were of foreign origin, according to al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb, which claimed responsibility in the aftermath along with the jihadist group known as Al Mourabitoun. But the terror threat in Burkina Faso is increasingly homegrown, experts say. |
| The northern border region is now the home of a local preacher, Ibrahim Malam Dicko, who radicalised his followers and has claimed recent deadly attacks against troops and civilians. His association, Ansarul Islam, is now considered a terrorist group by Burkina Faso’s government. | The northern border region is now the home of a local preacher, Ibrahim Malam Dicko, who radicalised his followers and has claimed recent deadly attacks against troops and civilians. His association, Ansarul Islam, is now considered a terrorist group by Burkina Faso’s government. |