Lomé — 19 people were killed in an attack during the night of 1 to 2 October in Fanworgou, a border town between Togo and Burkina Faso.

A commando of armed men attacked a contingent of Togolese soldiers in charge of guarding the border and protecting the workers of a local company in charge of building a protective barrier to prevent the infiltration of armed groups into Burkina Faso.

The commando managed to break through the barriers already built and attacked the patrols of the Togolese military. They then attacked the hut where the workers were resting and destroyed part of the construction company's equipment.

There were 19 casualties on the ground: 9 soldiers and 10 civilians. The wounded are at least 8 civilians and 4 soldiers. The army intervened by sending reinforcements and armed helicopters. Women and children were believed to be among the attackers.

The attack has not been claimed, but it took place about 4 km east of the attack on 20 July this year in Kpenkankandi, which killed at least twenty-one Togolese soldiers, and which was claimed by the JNIM (Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wa al-Muslimin "Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims"), which had posted images of the attack from one of its drones on its social networks.

The JNIM, affiliated with Al Qaeda, which operates in the Sahelian belt between Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso, intends to extend its activities to West African states bordering the Atlantic Ocean, such as Togo.

In the border region with Burkina Faso, a state of emergency has been declared since 2022 to deal with armed incursions from the neighbouring state.

The border areas of Togo and Burkina Faso, as well as the latter's border with Benin, have long been experiencing tensions linked to the presence of jihadist groups and criminals engaged in illicit trafficking (see Fides, 6/10/2023).