THE Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) will evacuate Ghanaian traders injured in an armed insurgent attack in Burkina Faso last Saturday to Ghana for continued medical treatment, President John Dramani Mahama has announced.
Speaking at the maiden Ghana Tree Crops Investment Summit and Exhibition in Accra yesterday, the President described the attack as a stark reminder of the growing instability and insecurity in the sub-region, warning that it posed a serious threat to cross-border trade and regional integration.
“Recently, some traders from Ghana travelled to Burkina Faso to buy tomatoes. They were ambushed in a village where they were transacting business. Armed insurgents and terrorist groups attacked them, and unfortunately, we lost a number of our compatriots. Thankfully, a few survived,” President Mahama said.
“The Ghana Armed Forces are arranging to medically evacuate the injured from Burkina Faso so they can continue receiving treatment here in Ghana. On behalf of the government, I will like to express our condolences to the families of those who were either killed or injured,” he added.
President Mahama stated that Ghana and Burkina Faso have had long-standing trade relations, particularly in agricultural products like onions, tomatoes, and other edible products, referring to the incident as unfortunate.
Islamist insurgents in an attack on Titao in Northern Burkina Faso on Saturday, killed seven Ghanaian tomato traders who were part of 18 traders who had entered the town to buy tomatoes.
According to the Minister for the Interior, Mr Mohammed Muntaka Mubarak, the militants stormed the town, separating men from women before opening fire “killing almost all the males there, burning them together with the truck.”
The bodies of the deceased, who were burnt beyond recognition, have since been buried.
BY ABIGAIL ANNOH & AGNES OWUSU
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