Two generals accused of organizing a 2015 coup attempt against a transitional government in Burkina Faso were sentenced to 10 and 20 years in prison respectively on Monday, reported Reuters.
General Gilbert Diendéré and Djibrill Bassolé, both close allies of Burkina Faso’s deposed former president Blaise Compaore, were handed the sentences by the military court of Ouagadougou. Diendere was given a 20-year prison term on charges of murder and harming state security, while Bassole, who was accused of being the coup’s mastermind, was given a 10-year prison sentence on charges of treason.
Compaore’s attempt to change the constitution to extend his 27-year rule angered the people of Burkina Faso who forced him to flee the West African nation in 2014. The ex-president now lives in exile in the neighboring Ivory Coast.
Troops from the elite Presidential Security Regiment under the command of General Gilbert Diendere, Compaore’s right-hand man, took members of the transitional government hostage less than a month before elections the following year. The week-long power grab failed after army-backed demonstrators attacked the rebels’ barracks. During the attack, fourteen people were killed and more than 300 wounded as the protesters attempted to resist the coup.
“This is a victory for the Burkinabe people, a victory for democracy and the rule of law,” said Prosper Farama, a lawyer for people injured in the coup attempt. “Only the people, by their legitimacy, confer power.”
Both Diendere and Bassole had denied the charges. But the prosecution, which had sought life sentences, said the two had been instrumental in the events.
Diendere was “the main instigator in the coup” and Bassole “helped to prepare [it]”, said military prosecutor Pascaline Zoungrana.
Diendere’s lawyer said he would discuss his client about a possible appeal against the court’s order.
Burkina Faso has been plagued by jihadist and inter-ethnic violence over the last few years. Last month, 24 soldiers were killed by suspected Islamist militants in what is been referred to as the deadliest attack yet on the country’s army.
