Four French citizens have been arrested in Burkina Faso over claims that they are foreign intelligence agents.
According to AFP, Burkinabe and diplomatic sources made this known on Tuesday, December 19, 2023.
“We are verifying the real work of these four French residents considered agents of the DGSE,” the Burkinabe source said.
A French diplomatic source said four French officials holding diplomatic passports and visas were arrested in Ouagadougou by Burkinabe police on December 1, 2023.
The source clarified that these individuals, identified as technicians, were in Burkina Faso to conduct computer maintenance work for the French embassy. Despite ongoing legal proceedings, the French government rejects allegations that the technicians had motives beyond their designated computer maintenance tasks, insisting on their prompt return to France.
An additional European diplomatic source noted that the French technicians were familiar with their Burkinabe colleagues.
The arrest was initially reported by Jeune Afrique magazine on Tuesday, citing accusations of espionage in the capital of Ouagadougou. The French diplomatic source reassured that efforts are underway to secure the release of the technicians, while a Burkinabe source mentioned that neighbouring Togo is assisting in finding a resolution.
Recall that relations between Burkina Faso and France have strained since the military coup in 2022, citing difficulties in addressing a jihadist insurgency that began in 2015.
Following the coup, led by Captain Ibrahim Traore, Burkina Faso’s military leaders instructed French forces, aiding in the anti-jihadist efforts, to leave the country in February of the current year.
The violence in Burkina Faso has claimed over 17,000 lives since 2015, with more than two million people displaced, according to data from the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (ACLED).
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