Ouagadougou — On 30 September 2022, Captain Ibrahim Traoré seized power in Burkina Faso by ousting Lieutenant Colonel Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba. Four years on, the young junta leader claims a profound transformation: territorial reconquest, a strengthened army, national sovereignty asserted, and a clean break with several Western partners. Yet behind this official narrative, the record remains fiercely contested — especially on civilian security, displacement, and public freedoms.
The war against armed groups: an absolute priority
When he took power, Ibrahim Traoré made the fight against jihadist groups his top priority. His government bolstered the armed forces and expanded the Volunteers for the Defense of the Homeland (VDP), civilian auxiliaries called upon to support the army.
The authorities claim to have retaken several areas previously controlled or threatened by armed groups. Traoré also highlights increased military capabilities and population mobilization as pillars of his security strategy.
But four years after his rise, violence has not disappeared. Armed groups continue to attack security forces and civilians. ACLED notes that jihadist groups retain significant operational capacity in Burkina Faso and that attacks on civilians remain a major feature of the conflict.
The result is paradoxical: the state says it has tightened territorial control, yet insecurity remains a daily reality in several regions.
More than two million displaced
One of the heaviest indicators of the conflict is population displacement. According to UNHCR data, more than two million people were internally displaced within Burkina Faso by the end of 2025, in addition to refugees and asylum seekers. UNHCR’s October–December 2025 tally recorded precisely over 2.06 million internally displaced persons.
These displacements are not solely the result of jihadist attacks. Human Rights Watch also documents violence by government forces and VDP against civilians accused, among other things, of supporting armed groups. The organization says it documented attacks that killed at least 1,800 civilians between 2023 and 2025, while stressing that abuses are committed by multiple parties to the conflict.
The plight of the displaced thus encapsulates a major difficulty in the security record: retaking territory does not necessarily mean durably guaranteeing the safety of the people living there.
Journalists under pressure
The other major rupture of the Traoré years concerns press freedom. The authorities justify certain measures by the context of war and the need to preserve the morale of troops and the population. Press freedom organizations, however, describe a considerable shrinking of the media space.
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) says several journalists have been arrested, abducted, or requisitioned to join the armed forces. In 2025, the organization recorded several journalists subjected to forced enlistment and eight journalists questioned by security services in October alone.
The case of Atiana Serge Oulon, publication director of the newspaper L’Événement, has become emblematic. Abducted in June 2024, he was presented by the authorities as having been requisitioned to serve in the army. However, an investigation published in 2026 by RSF claims he was secretly held in Ouagadougou rather than sent to the front as the official version indicated.
Forced enlistment: a new weapon of repression?
The issue of forced enlistment goes beyond journalists alone. Human Rights Watch reports that dozens of government critics were reportedly requisitioned and sent to combat zones. The organization believes this practice has notably affected journalists, civil society activists, opponents, and magistrates.
The phenomenon is particularly sensitive because it blurs the line between national mobilization and political punishment. In a war context, the state has mobilization mechanisms for national defense. But human rights organizations stress that such procedures must respect legal safeguards and allow those concerned to challenge their assignment.
A government that claims sovereignty
Ibrahim Traoré, for his part, defends a vision built on sovereignty and a break from old dependencies. Burkina Faso has distanced itself from France, strengthened ties with Russia, and moved closer to Mali and Niger within the Alliance of Sahel States. The government also highlights policies for local processing of resources, particularly in the mining sector.
But this assertion of sovereignty comes with a retreat in political and civic space. According to several organizations, journalists, activists, opponents, and human rights defenders have been arrested, detained, or forced into exile.
Four years, an unfinished record
Four years after the September 2022 coup, Ibrahim Traoré’s record cannot be reduced to a single reading. His government can point to the militarization of the fight against armed groups, the mobilization of the VDP, the pursuit of greater strategic autonomy, and some economic advances.
But the displacement figures, the persistence of attacks, and accusations of abuses against civilians show that the security crisis remains deep. At the same time, the arrests of journalists, disappearances, and forced enlistments documented by international organizations raise the question of the price paid in the name of war.
In Burkina Faso, after four years of military rule, the challenge remains twofold: reconquer territory, but also ensure that reconquest does not abandon the rights and protection of the population.
