What happened
JNIM assaulted Djibo, the provincial capital of Soum encircled since 2022, overran and razed its army base and withdrew; troops were flown back in afterwards. The group claimed some 200 soldiers killed, a figure no other party confirmed, and human rights researchers later documented executions of civilians in the town. The operation struck several other positions the same day, and within a day JNIM fighters entered Diapaga in the east, attacking the camp and freeing prisoners from the town's jail before leaving.
The heaviest documented attack in Burkina Faso in this module's record, and the clearest demonstration of the pattern the positions series counts: an armed group able to overrun a besieged provincial garrison and choose not to hold it. Djibo's encirclement did not end; the town remains supplied by air.
Confidence: Moderate
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