Burkina Faso’s Defense Minister, Colonel Kassoum Coulibaly, accused an “international coalition” of targeting his country and claimed that there had been violations of the country’s airspace.

He also alleged that the April massacre of civilians was carried out by jihadists disguised as soldiers, contradicting allegations by some human rights groups who blamed the army for the incident.

The military junta running the country appointed Coulibaly as the defence minister. Coulibaly denied that the Russian mercenary force, Wagner, was operating in the country, calling such claims unsubstantiated.

He also stated that the international coalition aligned against Burkina Faso was responding to the country’s closer ties with Russia since the military coup last September, which brought the current regime to power.

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At a meeting in Ouagadougou with union representatives and leaders of other civil society groups, the justice minister, Colonel Francois Yameogo, acknowledged that 136 bodies had been buried in Karma last week after the April 20 massacre.

He noted that investigations were ongoing, following accusations that the Burkinabe army was responsible for the killings. However, the national intelligence agency at the same meeting placed the blame on the jihadists.

President Ibrahim Traore, who came to power in September 2022, has pledged to recapture the 40 percent of Burkina Faso’s territory that is currently under the control of jihadists.

The ongoing violence has caused over 10,000 deaths, according to non-governmental aid groups, and forced two million people to flee their homes.