The security minister said the officers were attacked during a rescue mission in the northern town of Yiergou.

The Burkina Faso government stated that in the conflict-affected northern part of the country, a police force was ambushed, killing at least 11 policemen and missing four others.

In a statement released on Tuesday, Security Minister Ousseini Compaore said that the officers were attacked while on a rescue mission to the recently violent town of Yirgou.

“Since yesterday, joint search operations with the military have been ongoing,” Compaore added.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.

Since 2015, Burkina Faso has been working hard to counter increasingly frequent and deadly attacks by armed groups associated with Al-Qaida and Islamic State (ISIS).

Such attacks have so far killed at least 1,400 people. They started in the northern part of the country on the border with Mali, but later spread to other regions, especially the eastern region, triggering a major humanitarian crisis.

In early June, the northern village of Solhan was attacked. The deadliest attack Since the beginning of the conflict, at least 138 people have lost their lives. Local sources said the death toll was 160.The massacre resulted in more than 7,000 households Find a safer place.

According to UNHCR data, since 2019, violence in the country has forced more than 1.2 million people (approximately one-twentieth of the total population) to flee their homes.

The agency stated in early June that approximately 150,000 people have become internally displaced this year alone, of which 84% are women and children.