More Burkina Faso attacks..

[Pheroze]

Worst case scenario this morning. Sadly, the news that he has been found dead.

A Canadian kidnapped in Burkina Faso on Tuesday has been found dead, a spokesman for the security ministry told Reuters on Thursday.

The man was abducted after nightfall by a dozen gunmen on a mining site owned by Vancouver-based Progress Minerals near the border with Niger, in an area that the government says is under growing threat from armed jihadists.

“It’s the Canadian that was found last night in the province of Oudalan,” said spokesman Jean Paul Badoum.

Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland released a statement Thursday and said, “Canada is appalled and deeply saddened that Kirk Woodman, who was abducted on January 15, 2019, has been killed in Burkina Faso.”

Very sad. Boy Canadians are taking it on the chin recently! We are like the school nerd in this current environment. Maybe the following observation is more true than we realize:

In Beijing, the Chinese foreign ministry’s surprisingly pugnacious spokeswoman, Hua Chunying, dismissed Canada’s efforts to rally international support in its tense dispute with China, using what sounded in translation like a schoolyard taunt: Canada’s “so-called allies,” she said, “could be counted on 10 fingers.”

Our foreign service has not shown itself to be effective in protecting Canadians recently that's for sure!

 

[LivingTheDream]

@Pheroze I wouldn't say Canada is getting beat up. I think maybe its citizens are being a bit naive when travelling to these foreign countries. Those security announcements for that area in BF have been out for a while. Canada is usually one of the first to report safety concerns, I would say probably sooner than the US.

The China incident(s) are tricky, they do what they want when they want. It has long been advise and an unwritten rule be prepared to pay a fee to get out of the country. I have heard of people being held 24 hours...just cause they can. I honestly think China is the last country I would want to go, other countries can be pressured, China seems to embrace an international pissing contest.

 

[BRICKBURN]

....................
Our foreign service has not shown itself to be effective in protecting Canadians recently that's for sure!

I'm pretty sure the travel warnings were up. Don't go in this area. But, he obviously had work to get done.
I think the fella was working in an area I would not be caught in without a lot of helpful friends with big guns.
Just bloody sad.

 

[Pheroze]

on a mining site owned by Vancouver-based Progress Minerals near the border with Niger, i

It sounds like this Canadian was there on business. I wonder what the company had in place for security.

On the issue of our foreign service - in two scenarios that I have knowledge of they have been immaculately crap. My one friend was a dual British citizen as well and they helped enormously. If he didn't have British support he would have come to a terrible end. Not a huge sample size, but I just do not have any faith in Canadian overseas bureaucrats unfortunately. The comparison the situation presented really was stark.

 

[sestoppelman]

https://thedefensepost.com/2019/01/31/burkina-faso-terrorist-attack-kompienbiga-kompienga/ Very near the Benin border.

 

[johnnyblues]

Would love to hear some good news from that region.

 

[LivingTheDream]

https://globalnews.ca/news/4925660/burkina-faso-army-kills-islamic-extremists/

Here is some sorta good news

 

[johnnyblues]

So you want to reconsider and go?

 

[LivingTheDream]

Lol I'm good for now, but 146 less terrorists is a positive step.

 

[sestoppelman]

There was another story with a not so good ending, several LE killed in an attack. Not going well. Benin now has "reconsider travel" in the north and west as well due to recent attacks on the border with BF. State still has it a low risk, but with those new caveats.

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

I have two friends/co-workers in Lagos, both US citizens, that just did a hunt in northwest Benin and had no issues.

 

[Dean2]

I have two friends/co-workers in Lagos, both US citizens, that just did a hunt in northwest Benin and had no issues.

I know guys that have been in Afghanistan and Syria recently with no problems. Does not make it a good idea. As to the comments about the Canadian Foreign service being crap, I completely agree. If you need help getting out of another country those clowns will just make your situation worse. Hire your own help and sign up with a good removal service before you go.

 

[Nyati]

Last Friday, a Spanish missionary was killed in a terrorist attack at the border town of Nohao, between Togo and Burkina Faso. Four border policemen were also killed.

The situation is not getting any better in the area.

 

[Hogpatrol]

Last Friday, a Spanish missionary was killed in a terrorist attack at the border town of Nohao, between Togo and Burkina Faso. Four border policemen were also killed.

The situation is not getting any better in the area.

These bad actors' bases are known. Their cell phone locations are known. Why they aren't wiped out is beyond me.

 

[jacques smith]

During DSC I also talked to Ernest about BF. He showed me pics of his burned out truck and said he was done at least for now. Think I’ll pass. Very sad

 

[Nyati]

The Burkina Faso Minister of Foreign affairs declared that the terrorists are attacking posts along the border with Benin, Ivory Coast and Ghana.

They are moving south and little is being done to stop them.

 

[johnnyblues]

Man they better get on it or another African country will wind up in ruins. As well as my dream of hunting there in the near future.

 

[sestoppelman]

I saw a story on the news last night I think, saying that ISIS is actually targeting west Africa now and that the US and perhaps others will take a serious look at how the Chinese and Russians are making inroads in Africa. As the story was airing, I was yelling at the tube, NO DUH! This could be interesting..

 

[LivingTheDream]

I'm not 100% sure this is ISIS, though given their recent ass kicking in Syria, there are sure a lot of displaced terrorist. Feel like this has been brewing for a while given what has taken place in Mali and Nigeria.

But if the US can start to see what China is doing to Africa it is a good thing. Just read how Djibouti is basically Chinese owned.

Either way, western armies are going to be ones to fix it.

 

[johnnyblues]

Getting worse and worse