Burkina Faso Freezes Assets Of Ex-President Damiba, 112 Others Over Destabilisation Plot

Burkina Faso’s transitional government, led by Captain Ibrahim Traore, has frozen the assets of former transitional president Paul Henri Damiba, 112 other individuals, and two legal entities.

The decision to freeze their assets was outlined in a decree signed by Minister of Economy Dr. Aboubacar Nakanabo on November 19, 2024.

According to the decree, the sanctions also apply to former officials and public figures, including ex-Foreign Ministers Djibril Bassolé and Alpha Barry, journalist Newton Ahmed Barry, and former deputy mayor of Dori, Aziz Diallo.

Military officers, including Ahmed Kinda, Yves Didier Bamouni, and Romeo Ouoba, some of whom have been dismissed from the armed forces, were also named.

These individuals have been implicated in alleged plans to destabilise the country’s transition.

The order also extends to armed terrorist groups operating within the country, including the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (GSIM), the Macina Liberation Front, Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, Ansardine, Almourabitoune, and the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara.

Officials said the sanctions would last for six months and could be renewed.

This action against former President Damiba comes shortly after he and several other high-ranking officers, including Evrard Somda, the former head of the gendarmerie, were dismissed from the Burkinabe military for “conspiracy against state security.”

It will be recalled that a Burkinabe civil society organisation recently called on the Togolese government to extradite Damiba, who has been in exile in Lomé since October 2022 after he was ousted.

Also, Traoré, during an address on national radio, said that his Transitional Government was in talks with Togolese authorities for the extradition of Damiba.

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