12 extremist suspects dead after arrests in Burkina Faso

OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso – Twelve people who had been arrested in Burkina Faso as suspected extremists were found dead in the cells where they were held overnight, a local prosecutor said Wednesday.

Judicael Kadeba, the prosecutor of Faso in the Eastern region, said 25 people were arrested Monday on suspicion of being extremists in Tawalbougou, a village in the Fada N’Gourma commune.

“Twelve among them died in the same night in the cells where they were detained,” he said in a statement.

An investigation has been opened into the deaths, he said.

The deaths come less than a month after Human Rights Watch reported that Burkina Faso security forces allegedly executed 31 men hours after their arrests during a counterterrorism operation in the northern town of Djibo.

The latest arrests come amid a worsening security situation in the northern Sahel region where jihadist groups linked to the Islamic State and al-Qaida are increasing attacks. The violence has killed hundreds of people and displaced more than 775,000 others.