14 Killed In Pair Of Attacks In North

Four soldiers and 10 civilians have been killed in separate attacks in northern Burkina Faso, reports Reuters.

On Sunday, unidentified gunmen opened fire on civilians traveling to a market in the village of Sikire, not far from the border with Mali, killing 10, two security officials told the news agency.

A witness said the gunmen arrived on motorbikes and appeared to fire randomly. 

On Monday, gunmen attacked an anti-terrorism unit operating in the Nassoumbou area, also in the north, the army said in a statement. 

Four soldiers were killed and five injured in that attack.

The same unit lost 12 troops in December 2016 in an attack claimed by Ansarul Islam, which is believed to be Al-Qaida's front group in the country. 

Burkina Faso declared a six-month state of emergency on Dec. 31 amid increasing violence.