Burkina Faso’s military junta frees overthrown president Kabore
Ouagadougou, Apr 7 (EFE).- Burkina Faso’s ruling military junta has freed former president Roch Kabore, according to authorities on Thursday.
Kabore had been detained since he was deposed in a military coup on January 24.
“After consultations started over three weeks ago with former president Roch Marc Christian Kabore, it has been decided that he will return to his home in Ouagadougou,” the government said in a statement released late Wednesday.
Measures were taken to ensure his safety, the statement added, giving no further details.
The release came after pressure from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), which once again demanded the “unconditional” release of the ex-leader at an extraordinary summit in Ghana on March 25.
The military came to power after widespread discontent amid a spike in extremist attacks in the West African country.
The junta, authorized to rule the country for three years, deposed Kabore and imposed other measures such as dissolving the government and parliament.
Burkina Faso, a country bordering Mali, Niger, Ivory Coast, Togo and Benin, has a population of about 20 million people and has suffered from Islamist militants attacks since 2015.
The attacks, blamed on groups allied to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State, have left more than 1.5 million people internally displaced, according to the Burkinabe government.EFE
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