THE Burkina Faso began this week the recruitment of 50,000 “volunteers for the defense of the homeland” (Voluntaires pour la défense de la patrie, VDP), who “they will strengthen the ranks of the army in the context of the fight against terrorism”was announced yesterday Tuesday (25/10) by the military regime.
“Recruitment of 35,000 community VDPs has begun, or 100 VDPs per community”said a press release by the commander of the Guard and Homeland Defense (BVDP) Brigade, Col. Boukare Zougranawho was also named minister of local government, decentralization and security last night.
“The mission assigned to these community VDPs is to protect, alongside the defense and security forces, their populations and properties in their communities of origin” from jihadist attacksthe same img clarified.
The recruitment is in addition to that announced on Monday by the BVDP, which intends to form a force of 15,000 VDPs that will be “deployable throughout the national territory”.
The status of VDPs is defined by a law effective from January 21, 2020. These are persons with “citizenship of Burkina Faso”which have a role “complementary to the defense and security forces”they “volunteer” for the defense “of their villages or place of origin”.
They are provided with 14 days of military training, individual weapons and means of communication. These paramilitaries are paying an extremely heavy price in jihadist attacks in Burkina Faso, especially in its northern and eastern parts.
There is no public data available on their exact number. Initially, the goal was to recruit 13,000 civilians.
The new mass recruitment comes as 3,000 men are already being drafted into the armed forces to join the fight against the jihadists.
These initiatives were announced after the new coup carried out on September 30 by Captain Ibrahim Traore, with the declared purpose of “recovering the territories occupied by hordes of terrorists”.
On Monday, at least ten soldiers were killed and around fifty others were wounded in a “terrorist attack” in Jibo, a town under siege by the jihadists for three months, in the north of Burkina Faso.
Jihadist organizations control about 40% of the territory.
Source: News Beast
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