Burkina Faso: 15 killed in mosque attack

At least 15 people were killed in a mosque attack by unidentified gunmen on Friday in northern Burkina Faso, a local source told Xinhua.

"Unidentified gunmen attacked Salmossi mosque, 20 km to Gorom-Gorom commune (in the Oudalan province, 269 km north-east to the capital Ouagadougou), about 15 worshipers were killed and 5 others injured," a military officer in the area told Xinhua over the phone.

Several local sources also confirmed the attack, whereas Burkina Faso authorities still remain silent on the tragedy.

Since 2015, Burkina Faso has been facing a spate of terrorist attacks, in which more than 500 people were killed and over 280,000 displaced including more than 9,000 pupils.

In the last few days, the country has seen an upsurge of terrorist attacks, which sparked panic that cause people in the region to leave their home for safer places in the country.

To curb terrorism, the state of emergency or curfew has been declared in many regions and the army has scaled up nationwide counter-terrorism operations.