Crimes against humanity charges in Burkina Faso

The leader of last month's attempted military coup in Burkina Faso, Gen. Gilbert Diendere, was charged Oct. 16 with crimes against humanity. Prosecutor Col. Sita Sangare, Burkina Faso's director of military justice, said that he has charged 23 people  so far with charges ranging from murder and concealing the bodies of the dead to threatening state security and fraud. The prosecutors are also looking to charge Diendere's wife for her part in the events. During the military coup attempt at least 11 people were killed and more than 250 injured. The coup started when Diendere took the president and his cabinet hostage right before elections last month. The election has been rescheduled for Nov. 29.

From Jurist, Oct. 17. Used with permission.

  1. Burkina Faso coup leader charged in Sankara assassinatiom

    Prosecutor Col. Sita Sangare, Burkina Faso's director of military justice, on Dec. 6 announced charges filed last week against General Gilbert Diendere for complicity in the assassination of former president and revolutionary leader Thomas Sankara in 1987. Diendere, the leader of the September attempted military coup in Burkina Faso, was the commander of the presidential guard in 1987. (Jurist, Dec. 8)

  2. Burkina Faso announces Kabore as winner of presidential race

    Burkina Faso's high court on Dec. 15 announced results from last month's elections, declaring Roch Marc Christian Kabore winner of the presidency. Kabore won with 53% of the vote, confirming provisional results released shortly after the Nov. 29 election. He will be sworn in Dec. 29. Kabore replaces a transitional government put in place after former president Blaise Compaore was forced to step down last year amid protests against his plan to issue a constitutional amendment that would extend his 27-year term. (Jurist) Kabore served as chairman of the ruling Congress for Democracy and Progress before leaving it in 2014, in protest of plans to extend Compaore's rule. (BBC News)

  3. Burkina Faso ex-president charged in murder of Thomas Sankara

    Burkina Faso’s former president Blaise Compaoré, has been indicted by a military tribunal, in the murder of his predecessor, revolutionary leader Thomas Sankara. Compaoré has been in exile since 2014 in Ivory Coast. The tribunal in Ouagadougou pronounced his indictment alongside 14 others including Gilbert Diendéré and Yacinthe Kafando. (CGTN)

  4. Burkina Faso opens trial in murder of Thomas Sankara

    A military court in Burkina Faso on Oct. 11 began the trial of 14 people, including ex-president Blaise Compaore, accused of plotting the assassination of the country’s former president Thomas Sankara. The trial takes place 34 years after a hit squad gunned down Sankara in one of the most infamous killings in modern African history. (Jurist)

  5. Burkina Faso ex-president convicted in murder of Thomas Sankara

    Former president Blaise CompaorĂ© has been sentenced in absentia to life in prison for his involvement in the murder of revolutionary leader Thomas Sankara, who was gunned down in a coup in 1987. Two other key suspects were given life sentences in a six-month trial that was suspended on several occasions. Experts say the role foreign powers—including France and Libya—may have played in Sankara’s death remains unknown. (TNH)