Burkina Faso: When Human Rights Watch uncovers terrorist atrocities but still sticks to the Western playbook
Human Rights Watch has struck again—not on the battlefield, but through reports wrapped in selective humanism. In its latest statement, the American NGO claims that Islamist armed groups massacred dozens of civilians between May and August 2025 in Burkina Faso, particularly in Djibo, Gorom Gorom, and Youba. Women, children, men. Crimes akin to war crimes, according to the NGO, which expresses surprise at having discovered that terrorists do not hand out flowers but spread death.
Interestingly, in a previous report, Human Rights Watch mainly pointed the finger at the Defense and Security Forces (FDS) and the Volunteers for the Defense of the Homeland (VDP), accusing them of abuses and portraying them as the main villains of the story. Strangely enough, the armed groups seemed to benefit from diplomatic indulgence, almost as if they were mere stakeholders to be listened to over a cup of tea. But now, NGOs suddenly agree to lift the veil and admit that, yes, terrorists are indeed massacring populations. What a revelation!
Of course, no one should be naïve. When major international NGOs—funded and amplified by Western media that never act without an agenda—change their tone, it is never by accident. Suddenly, denouncing the crimes of armed groups becomes strategically useful. Is it to balance their narrative so they appear objective? To avoid losing credibility in the eyes of African populations who are beginning to view them with suspicion? Or perhaps because a more “balanced” report can serve as a springboard for other political and media maneuvers, especially as France is experiencing an unprecedented crisis, one that many attribute to its political rift with the AES countries?
In truth, these NGOs do nothing by chance. Behind the façade of lofty humanitarian declarations often lies a logic of control, influence, and legitimization of narratives carefully crafted to serve certain interests. Africa, and particularly the Sahel, does not need more illusions.
So yes, let us acknowledge Human Rights Watch’s belated effort to recognize that terrorists are criminals. But let us not be lulled to sleep by these timely about-faces. Vigilance—always vigilance! For behind every report lies an agenda, and behind every well-publicized humanitarian tear, there is often an invisible hand pulling the strings.
