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By Ezekiel David
Around 100 members of the Bear Brigade, a Russian private military company, are withdrawing from Burkina Faso after just three months of deployment.
The group announced on their Telegram channel that they were leaving because they needed to strengthen Russia’s defence against Ukraine’s offensive in the Kursk region. The group had arrived in May to support the country’s military junta.
“When the enemy arrives on our Russian territory, all Russian soldiers forget about internal problems and unite against a common enemy,” stated Bear Brigade commander Viktor Yermolaev to France’s Le Monde newspaper.
The unit, specialising in guarding high-profile individuals, was reportedly responsible for protecting Burkina Faso’s interim president, Captain Ibrahim Traoré, and the Russian ambassador in Ouagadougou.
With Islamist insurgencies plaguing Burkina Faso since 2015, this pullout raises concerns about the country’s worsening security situation. Survivors tell that up to 300 people died in a recent attack in the northern village of Barsalogho, which was carried out by a group affiliated with al-Qaeda.
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While the government hasn’t confirmed the exact casualty count, Communication Minister Rimtalba Jean Emmanuel Ouedraogo called the attack “barbaric.”
Burkina Faso, along with its neighbours Mali and Niger, has experienced military takeovers and formed the Alliance of Sahel States.
These countries have severed ties with former colonial power France and established closer relations with Russia, including procuring weapons and deploying fighters from the Wagner Group, now known as the Africa Corps.
Despite these efforts and the recruitment of local self-defence militias, Islamist groups have intensified their attacks, particularly in Burkina Faso. The impact of the Bear Brigade’s partial withdrawal on the country’s security situation remains to be seen.
(Source: BBC)
