OUAGADOUGOU: At least 44 civilians have been killed in two separate attacks on villages in northern Burkina Faso, authorities there said, CNN reported.
Burkina Faso is a landlocked country in West Africa.
A local governor, Rodolphe Sorgho, blamed terrorists for the "despicable and barbaric" attacks, without naming a specific group.
Sorgho in a statement gave his "sincere condolences to the grieving families and wished a rapid recovery to the wounded."
Burkina Faso is one of the world's poorest counties and has become the epicentre of violence carried out by Islamist terrorists linked to al Qaeda and the Islamic State, according to CNN.
A resident of one of the villages said that "a large number of terrorists" attacked late on Thursday, with gunfire sounding throughout the night.
The violence began in neighbouring Mali in 2012 but has since spread across the arid expanse of the Sahel region south of the Sahara Desert.
Large areas in Burkina Faso's north and east have become ungovernable since 2018. Millions have fled their homes, fearing further raids by gunmen who frequently descend on rural communities on motorbikes. Thousands have been killed.