Burkina Faso on the edge over hotel seizure

A dark cloud hovers over Burkina Faso as they seek to recover from hours of security seizure.

In the last twenty four hours, a lot has happened negatively for the West African country following a blast at a private hotel.

Coming after a recent attack on Mali and Burkina Faso’s brush with constitutional inorderliness, the events of Saturday leave the country with very sour glimpses of a not so good statements.

Burkina Television RTB showed security forces during the operation to end a siege at Ouagadougou Splendid Hotel enginneered by al Qaeda fighters.

Burkinabes woke up to the sound of explosions and heavy gunfire on Saturday morning.

A military armoured emergency vehicle drove several times to the side of the hotel during the operation. Hostages were rescued.

Three Islamist gunmen have been killed in the process to restore control. At least 126 people have been freed, the country’s security minister said.

Some 20 people are believed to have been killed in the attack, which started late Friday evening.

Operations were also under way at a second hotel nearby, the Hotel Yibi, and security forces tried to determine if some of the fighters were in there.

Burkina Faso’s new government is set to hold an emergency meeting over the matter.

President Roch Marc Kabore has said the peperparators will be matched in equal measure.

The nationalities of those killed is yet to be made known, officials say.