When Muslims attack. Christmas. It’s the most dangerous time of the year for Christians across the world in the age of jihad (that and Ramadan). No media coverage, of course, or Christchurch outrage

The morning raid was carried out by dozens of jihadists on motorbikes and lasted several hours before armed forces backed by the air force drove the militants back. The army said the attack was of a “rare intensity”.

“A large group of terrorists simultaneously attacked the military base and the civilian population in Arbinda,” the army chief of staff said in a statement.

“This barbaric attack resulted in the deaths of 35 civilian victims, most of them women,” President Roch Marc Christian Kabore said on Twitter, praising the “bravery and commitment” of the defence and security forces.

Burkina Faso, which borders, Mali and Niger, has endured regular jihadist attacks which have left hundreds dead since the start of 2015 when militant violence began to spread across the Sahel region.

More than 700 people have been killed and around 560,000 internally displaced by the violence, according to the United Nations.

Je salue l'engagement et la bravoure de nos Forces de Défense et de Sécurité à Arbinda et leur exprime le soutien de la Nation. pic.twitter.com/IvDfWgHhn9 — Roch KABORE (@rochkaborepf) December 24, 2019

En mémoire des victimes civiles et militaires de l'attaque terroriste de ce mardi à Arbinda, j'ai décidé de décréter un deuil national de 48 heures sur toute l'étendue du territoire national à compter du mercredi 25 décembre à zéro (00) heure. — Roch KABORE (@rochkaborepf) December 24, 2019

31 women killed in Christmas Eve attack in Burkina Faso By Africa Times editor, 25 December 2019: hristmas Eve in Burkina Faso has been marred by a terrorist attack that has claimed 42 lives, with President Roch Marc Christian Kaboré declaring a two-day period of national mourning that begins at midnight. The attack happened Tuesday morning in the village of Arbinda, in the northeast Soum territory along the border with Mali. At least 35 civilians, 31 of them women, were killed, according to Burkinabe officials. Another six civilians were injured. Seven members of the national armed forces also were killed and another 20 injured. The military said it was able to “neutralize” some 80 extremists while seizing large numbers of munitions and vehicles. The government also appealed for extra vigilance during the end-of-year season in its statement. Armed attacks on churches in Burkina Faso have increased – an attack on a Protestant congregation earlier this month left 14 people dead – and Christians in the West African nation have been on edge during the holiday season. Attacks on mosques in the border region also have occurred. Kaboré called the attack barbaric and expressed his support, and that of the nation, for the military forces. Burkina Faso’s president is the current leader of the G5 Sahel nations, which also include Chad, Mali, Niger and Mauritania. During an extraordinary summit last week in Niamey – moved from Ouagadougou to honor 70 Nigerien troops also killed in a December attack – the G5 leaders agreed to recalibrate security operations to adjust to the increasing threat in the Mali-Niger-Burkina Faso border region.

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