A damning new report from Human Rights Watch (HRW) has accused the Burkinabè military and allied pro-government militias of carrying out a campaign of mass killings targeting Fulani civilians in western Burkina Faso during March 2025, resulting in at least 130 deaths and possibly several hundred more.
The atrocities, described by HRW as potential war crimes and crimes against humanity, occurred in the Boucle du Mouhoun region—specifically around Solenzo and neighboring areas in Banwa and Sourou provinces. The violence formed part of “Operation Green Whirlwind 2” (Opération Tourbillon Vert 2), a military campaign said to be spearheaded by special forces and local militias known as the Volunteers for the Defense of the Homeland (VDPs).
“Burkina Faso’s military was responsible for these mass killings of Fulani civilians,” said Ilaria Allegrozzi, senior Sahel researcher at HRW. “The government needs to impartially investigate these deaths and prosecute all those responsible.”
The report documents a coordinated operation beginning February 27 and extending into April, involving Rapid Intervention Battalions 7, 10, 18, and 23, under the direction of Rapid Intervention Group 2. According to HRW, instead of targeting jihadist insurgents, these units and VDP forces carried out ethnically motivated killings.
Survivor testimonies describe Fulani villages being warned of impending attacks and subsequently ambushed as they attempted to flee. In one of the most harrowing episodes, an apparent pincer movement between the villages of Béna and Lékoro trapped civilians in the bush, where they were shot and executed, including women and children.
“I saw a lot of VDPs coming, shooting at us indiscriminately.… We ran. But they chased us, caught some of us and executed them,” recounted a 60-year-old man from Sanakuy.
HRW analyzed videos from the area showing VDP members—some wearing uniforms marked “Groupe d’autodéfense de Mahouna” and “Force Rapide de Kouka”—loading corpses onto carts. Witnesses identified at least 14 of the dead, including children.
Eyewitness accounts consistently reported hate speech targeting the Fulani, and several survivors recalled being shot at while fleeing to neighboring Mali. “The VDPs shot at us like animals, while drones were flying over our heads,” said one Fulani herder who lost eight family members.
In response to the violence, the jihadist Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM) reportedly carried out retaliatory attacks in Sourou province, killing at least 100 civilians suspected of supporting the government. Survivors from villages such as Tiao described gruesome scenes and abandonment by state forces.
The Burkinabè government, in a March 15 statement, claimed its forces repelled a terrorist attack and denied targeting civilians. However, HRW asserts that no significant clashes with jihadist groups occurred in Solenzo at the time, directly contradicting the official narrative.
In response to the growing outcry, Burkina Faso’s High Court announced on March 20 that it had opened an investigation into calls for ethnic extermination. Adama Dieng, African Union Special Envoy on the Prevention of Genocide, also condemned the killings, calling them “reprehensible acts that must be punished.”
Eight lists compiled by survivors documented 130 named victims—32 children, 30 women, and 68 men—but many believe the death toll exceeds 300. As mass graves continue to be dug and families mourn in silence, HRW is urging the United Nations Security Council and African Union Peace and Security Council to place Burkina Faso on their immediate agenda.
“This wasn’t a war between armies,” said the Fulani herder who lost his family. “It was a war against families, women, and children. We are the ones who paid the price
