Food reaches Burkina Faso city besieged by jihadists

About 70 tonnes of food have been flown to the northern Burkina Faso city of Djibo, which has been blockaded by militant Islamists, according to military sources cited in local media.

The city – which has a population of about 300,000 – has faced a shortage of food and medicines, with reports that nine malnourished children have died because of the blockade.

People in other parts of Burkina Faso have been raising cash and food to send to Djibo.

The military sources said the food had already been distributed to residents.

But the humanitarian crisis remains critical, with Sidiki Tamboura, a native of Djibo who heads a non-governmental organisation, saying access roads to the city have been cut off since February.

“The life of the people is difficult. There is practically nothing to eat, not a grain of rice or millet, and all the stores are closed because there is nothing to sell,” he said.

Capt Ibrahim Traoré seized power last week, overthrowing another military officer, Lt Col Paul-Henri Damiba, after accusing him of failing to quell the insurgency that has devastated the lives of many people in Burkina Faso since 2015.