Burkina Faso junta detains four officers after it claimed to have thwarted coup attempt

The Burkina Faso junta said on Thursday (Sep 28) that it detained four officers a day after it announced that it thwarted a coup attempt. Citing an official statement, the news agency AFP reported that these officers were suspected of involvement in a "conspiracy against state security." Two other officers were on the run, the statement added. The identities of the four officers were not revealed.

However, security sources told AFP that at least two commanders of special units were among the arrested.

Junta to gather all info on coup plot

The coup attempt was foiled on Wednesday and the junta said it would seek to shed "all possible light on this plot". This development comes nearly a year to the day since junta leader Captain Ibrahim Traore seized power in the West African nation on September 30, 2022.

Traore's takeover was Burkina Faso's second coup in eight months.

On Tuesday night, thousands of people took to the streets of the capital Ouagadougou following a call from Traore supporters to "defend" him amid rumours of a coup on social media.

The streets were calm on Thursday with no special security arrangements visible.

Sharing a post on X on Wednesday, the junta leader stressed his "determination to lead the transition safely despite the adversity and different manoeuvres to stop our inexorable march towards assumed sovereignty".

Earlier in September, the military prosecutors said three soldiers had been arrested and charged with plotting against the junta.

(With inputs from agencies)

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