Burkina Faso’s military leader, Captain Ibrahim Traore, has pardoned 21 soldiers convicted of involvement in a failed coup attempt in 2015.
The decision was formalized through an official decree issued last week and obtained by AFP on Monday.
The amnesty follows Traore’s December 2024 announcement granting clemency to individuals convicted of the coup attempt against the transitional government formed after the ousting of longtime leader Blaise Compaoré in 2014.
The decree lists six officers, including two former unit commanders of the presidential guard, alongside 15 non-commissioned officers and rank-and-file soldiers.
These individuals were convicted in 2019 at a military tribunal in Ouagadougou for crimes including treason, murder, and endangering state security.
However, the amnesty does not extend to two high-ranking generals, Gilbert Diendiéré and Djibril Bassolé, identified as the coup’s masterminds, who remain imprisoned.
Under the decree, the pardoned soldiers will rejoin Burkina Faso’s army, which has been engaged in a prolonged battle against jihadist groups linked to Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State.
To qualify for the pardon, the individuals must pledge allegiance to the state and actively contribute to counterterrorism efforts.
