Burkina Faso gunmen ‘kill 20 at cattle market’ in Kompienga

At least 20 people have been killed in eastern Burkina Faso when gunmen stormed a cattle market, reports say.

Gunmen on motorbikes fired into the crowded market in Kompienga town in the middle of the day on Saturday, eyewitnesses were quoted as saying by local media.

It is unclear who was behind the attack.

Burkina Faso has seen a sharp rise in jihadist violence and inter-communal clashes in recent months.

The violence has forced hundreds of thousand of people to flee their homes.

On Friday at least 15 people were killed when suspected Islamist militants attacked a convoy of traders in the north, near the border with Mali.

The government blamed the attack on “terrorists”, a phrase usually used to the al-Qaeda and Islamic State-linked jihadists Burkina Faso has been battling in recent years.

Despite occasional government claims of success against the Islamist militants, the insecurity in the north and east of Burkina Faso has dramatically escalated.

Jihadists have often targeted schools, forcing about 300,000 children out of education.

BBC