Burkina Faso: Civil society figures targeted by security services

Activist Bassirou Badjo, an administrator at the General Directorate for National Solidarity and Humanitarian Assistance, was abducted from his workplace by individuals claiming to be state security agents. This incident is part of a broader pattern where activists, lawyers, and journalists critical of the regime in Burkina Faso have been kidnapped or arrested. The country has experienced political instability and increased violence, particularly since the coup in 2022 led by Ibrahim Traore. Another prominent civil sociery figure, columnist Rasmane Zinaba, had also been kidnapped. Zinaba was taken from his home and his whereabouts are unknown.