UN human rights chief Volker Turk called on transitional authorities in jihadist-hit Burkina Faso to quickly and transparently investigate the killing of 28 people whose bodies were found last weekend, AFP reported.
He welcomed the authorities' announcement of an investigation after the discovery of the bodies in the northwest of the country. "I call on them to ensure that it is swift, thorough, impartial and transparent and that all those responsible, regardless of position or rank, are brought to justice," he said.
The U.N. Human Rights Office said its local sources blamed the killings on the Volunteers to Defend the Fatherland (VDP) militia, formed to support the army in its fight against jihadists.
Burkina Faso, a landlocked West African country, is one of the poorest and most unstable countries in the world. Since 2015, it has been battling a jihadist-led insurgency linked to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group that has killed tens of thousands of people and displaced some two million.
