Volunteers for the Defense of the Homeland
Volontaires pour la défense de la patrie
LeadersLadij Joro  †
Dates of operation2020 – present
Active regionsBurkina Faso
Size2,000 (June 2021)[1]
AlliesBurkina Faso Armed Forces
France (Until February 2023)[2]
Turkey
Opponents

The Volunteers for the Defense of the Homeland (French: Volontaires pour la défense de la patrie, abbr. VDP) is an armed self-defense group in Burkina Faso created to fight jihadist insurgents. It is an auxiliary force supporting the Burkina Faso Armed Forces.[3]

History

On November 7, 2019, following a jihadist attack on a mining convoy, the president of Burkina Faso called for the creation of a civilian self-defense force. On January 21, 2020, the parliament of Burkina Faso passed a law establishing the Volunteers for the Defense of the Homeland. The law stipulated that people could voluntarily join the VDP and that after 14 days of training they were to be equipped with communication and vision equipment, together with weapons.[1] Members of the VDP have been accused of the murder of 19 men near Manja Hien in February 2020, and attacks on Peuhle villages in Yatenga, in which 43 people were killed.[4]

On June 4, 2021, during the Solhan and Tadaryat massacres, jihadists attacked VDP barracks before attacking civilians.[5] On June 11, 2021, six VDP fighters were killed in a jihadist ambush in Kogolbaraogo.[6] In December 2021 a jihadist attack killed many VDP fighters including one of their leaders, Ladij Joro.[7]

References

  1. 1 2 Pandora’s box. Burkina Faso, self-defense militias and VDP Law in fighting jihadism
  2. ↑ https://www.france24.com/en/africa/20230220-french-army-officially-ends-operations-in-burkina-faso
  3. ↑ "Suspected jihadists kill 28 in troubled Burkina Faso". Agence France-Presse. 1 February 2023. Retrieved 1 February 2023 – via ABS-CBN News.
  4. ↑ "World Report 2021: Rights Trends in Burkina Faso". Human Rights Watch. 18 December 2020. Retrieved 29 September 2023.
  5. ↑ "At least 114 killed in deadliest Burkina Faso attacks since 2015". The Hindu. Agence France-Presse. 2021-06-05. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 2021-06-05. Retrieved 2021-06-05.
  6. ↑ Burkina Faso : 3 soldats et 6 VDP tués et au moins 25 présumés terroristes neutralisés, 15 June 2021
  7. ↑ "Burkina Faso mourns 41 killed in 'insurgent' attack". DW.COM. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
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