Contrary to claims circulating on social media, Nigeria has not launched a missile strike on Burkina Faso. The social media post seemed to suggest that the tension between the Nigerian government under the leadership of President Bola Tinubu and Burkina Faso, under the leadership of Captain Ibrahim Traore, had reached an all-time high, resulting in a missile strike by Nigeria on Burkina Faso’s capital, Ouagadougou.
The claim is that the missile was targeted at the president of Burkina Faso and its military facilities. The Facebook post, which was shared by the page, INews, to its over 160k followers reads thus:
“In a shocking escalation, the Nigerian military launched its first missile strike early this morning on the capital of Burkina Faso. The attack reportedly targeted the presidential compound and key military installations, including the country’s air defense system and central barracks, which were left in ruins.”
The report failed to give any government comment from either Nigeria or Burkina Faso, claiming that eyewitnesses confirmed the attack, which triggered panic among civilians. It went on to also argue that the attack caused significant damage to strategic locations in the country.
In the claimed reaction to the attack, the President of Burkina Faso was reported to have ordered retaliation, stating that “Burkina Faso will not be intimidated or violated without consequences.”
Although various other Facebook pages, including Aso Villa News, reported the news, it has been confirmed that the post is untrue.
The last war Nigeria was ever fully involved in was the Chadian–Nigerian War, a brief war in April 1983 which had a casualty count of over 100 people. Since then, Nigeria has not been in any war with any nation, and it has neither attacked nor been attacked by any other nation.
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Although the relationship between Abuja and Ouagadougou has soured since the coup that brought in Captain Traore in September 2022, the two countries are not at loggerheads, and there is no tension of war between them.
Amidst the negative light in which various governments in West Africa, including the Government of Nigeria, cast Traore, she has continued to rise to popularity among the younger generation on social media platforms such as X.
