Tin-Ediar attack

At the time of the attack, a convoy of Burkinabe soldiers was traveling between Déou and Oursi when they were ambushed by ISGS militants in Tin-Ediar.^[3][4] The soldiers in the convoy had been returning to their original base in Dori after having spent six months on the frontline.^[5] Immediately after the ambush, intense fighting began between the Burkinabe soldiers and the jihadists.^[3]

Journalist and Sahel expert Wassim Nasr attributed the attack to the Islamic State - Sahil Province, although Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) is the most established jihadist group in the area.^[6][7] The Islamic State, in their statement on February 24 claiming responsibility for the attack, stated that they ambushed the soldiers with machine guns and other weapons.^[8]

The Burkinabe army announced on February 20 that at least 51 soldiers were killed in the attack.^[9][5] RFI stated that the death toll was likely higher as several dozen soldiers were stil missing.^[4] Libération stated that local security sources assessed the death toll at seventy soldiers.^[10] Burkinabe officials stated that a "response" with "aerial actions" helped kill or injure 160 jihadists from ISGS.^[5] ISGS denied these figures in a broadcast on March 16.^[11] The Africa Center for Strategic Studies stated that about 60 jihadists were killed in the counteroffensive.^[12]

The ISGS stated that over seventy soldiers were killed in the ambush, and that five were captured and dozens more were injured.^[8] In photos broadcast by ISGS, the bodies of at least 54 soldiers are visible.^[13] The attack was the deadliest day for the Burkinabe army since the 2021 Inata attack.^[5]