Burkina Faso’s military government has officially granted amnesty to 21 soldiers who were convicted for their involvement in a failed coup attempt in 2015.
The decision, issued through a presidential decree last week and seen by AFP, comes as part of broader reconciliation efforts under the current junta led by Captain Ibrahim Traoré.
The pardoned individuals—six officers and 15 enlisted soldiers—were convicted by a military tribunal in 2019 on charges ranging from treason and murder to endangering national security.
The group included two former unit commanders of the disbanded presidential guard. However, two top figures behind the coup, General Gilbert Diendere and former foreign minister Djibril Bassole, remain excluded from the amnesty.
Diendere and Bassole were handed lengthy prison sentences of 20 and 10 years respectively for masterminding the attempted power grab.
The failed coup unfolded in September 2015, a year after long-time president Blaise Compaoré was ousted by a popular uprising. The transitional civilian government that replaced him became the target of a brief and ultimately unsuccessful takeover attempt by loyalist forces.
The unrest left 14 people dead and more than 270 injured before being quelled within two weeks.
Captain Traoré, who seized power in 2022 following another military coup, first announced the intention to offer pardons in December 2023.
The move is reportedly aimed at strengthening the country’s ongoing counter-terrorism campaign, which has seen Burkina Faso’s armed forces battling jihadist groups affiliated with Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State for over a decade.
According to the decree, the pardoned soldiers will be reinstated into the military ranks but will not receive financial compensation or be eligible for promotions.
Additionally, the justice ministry indicated in December that approximately 1,200 individuals linked to the coup plot could potentially be pardoned, provided they meet specific conditions.
Those seeking clemency must apply before June and demonstrate what the decree describes as “a patriotic commitment to the reconquest of the territory,” as well as a willingness to support anti-terrorism operations.
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