On 30 September 2022, Captain Ibrahim Traoré seized power in Burkina Faso by toppling Lieutenant Colonel Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba. Four years on, the young junta leader claims to have engineered a profound transformation: reclaiming territory, strengthening the army, asserting national sovereignty and breaking with several Western partners. Yet behind this official narrative, the record remains fiercely contested – particularly on the security of civilians, population displacement and public freedoms. This is the moment of truth: a decisive turn that will define the country’s trajectory.
The war against armed groups: an absolute priority
When he took power, Ibrahim Traoré made the fight against jihadist groups his top priority. His government bolstered the armed forces and notably expanded the Volunteers for the Defense of the Homeland (VDP), civilian auxiliaries called upon to support the military.
The authorities claim to have recaptured several areas previously controlled or threatened by armed groups. Ibrahim Traoré also highlights increased military capabilities and the mobilization of the population as pillars of his security strategy.
But four years after he came to power, the violence has not disappeared. Armed groups continue to launch attacks against security forces and civilians. ACLED notes that jihadist groups retain significant operational capacity in Burkina Faso and that attacks on civilians remain a major feature of the conflict.
The picture is therefore paradoxical: the state says it has tightened its grip on territory, yet insecurity remains a daily reality in several regions.
More than two million displaced
One of the heaviest indicators of the conflict remains the displacement of populations. According to UNHCR data, more than two million people were internally displaced within Burkina Faso by the end of 2025, in addition to refugees and asylum seekers. UNHCR’s October–December 2025 figures recorded precisely over 2.06 million internally displaced persons.
These displacements are not solely the result of jihadist attacks. Human Rights Watch has also documented violence by government forces and VDP members against civilians accused, among other things, of supporting armed groups. The organization says it documented attacks that killed at least 1,800 civilians between 2023 and 2025, while stressing that abuses are committed by multiple parties to the conflict.
The plight of the displaced thus sums up a major difficulty in the security record: reclaiming territory does not necessarily mean guaranteeing lasting safety for the people living there.
Journalists under pressure
The other major rupture of the Traoré years concerns press freedom. The authorities justify certain measures by the context of war and the need to preserve the morale of troops and the public. Press freedom organizations, however, describe a considerable shrinking of the media space.
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) says several journalists have been arrested, abducted or conscripted into the armed forces. In 2025, the organization recorded several journalists subjected to forced enlistment and eight journalists questioned by security services in October alone.
The case of Atiana Serge Oulon, publication director of the newspaper L’Événement, has become emblematic. Abducted in June 2024, he was presented by the authorities as having been requisitioned to serve in the army. However, an investigation published in 2026 by RSF claims he was secretly detained in Ouagadougou rather than sent to the front as the official version indicated.
Forced enlistment: a new weapon of repression?
The issue of forced enlistment goes beyond the case of journalists. Human Rights Watch reports that dozens of critics of the regime were allegedly requisitioned and sent to combat zones. The organization believes this practice has affected journalists, civil society activists, opponents and magistrates.
The phenomenon is particularly sensitive because it blurs the line between national mobilization and political punishment. In a wartime context, the state has mechanisms for national defense mobilization. But human rights organizations stress that such procedures must respect legal safeguards and allow those concerned to challenge their assignment.
A government that claims sovereignty
Ibrahim Traoré, for his part, defends a vision based on sovereignty and breaking with former dependencies. Burkina Faso has distanced itself from France, strengthened ties with Russia and moved closer to Mali and Niger within the Alliance of Sahel States. The government also highlights policies for local processing of resources, particularly in the mining sector.
But this assertion of sovereignty has come with a retreat in political and civic space. Journalists, activists, opponents and human rights defenders have been arrested, detained or forced into exile, according to several organizations.
Four years on: the verdict is still open
Four years after the September 2022 coup, Ibrahim Traoré’s record cannot be reduced to a single reading. His government can point to the militarization of the fight against armed groups, the mobilization of the VDP, the pursuit of greater strategic autonomy and some economic advances.
But the displacement figures, the persistence of attacks and accusations of abuses against civilians show that the security crisis remains deep. At the same time, the arrests of journalists, disappearances and forced enlistments documented by international organizations raise the question of the price paid in the name of war.
In Burkina Faso, after four years of military rule, the challenge remains twofold: reclaiming territory, but also ensuring that the reconquest does not abandon the rights and protection of the population. This is the turning point that will shape the country’s future.
