Damiba’s departure had been demanded in Ouagadougou by hundreds of demonstrators favorable to Captain Ibrahim Traoré, who announced his dismissal on Friday evening.
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He finally capitulated. Two days after being deposed by Captain Ibrahim Traoré, the leader of the ruling junta in Burkina Faso, Lieutenant-Colonel Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba, finally agreed to resign, Sunday October 2, after 48 hours tensions marked by anti-French demonstrations.
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Following mediation between the two rivals by religious and community leaders, “President Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba himself proposed his resignation in order to avoid clashes with serious human and material consequences”says a press release from these very influential leaders in Burkina Faso.
Damiba’s departure – himself came to power in a January coup –was demanded in Ouagadougou by hundreds of demonstrators favorable to Captain Ibrahim Traoré, who announced his dismissal on Friday evening. Since this announcement, the ttension was strong in Burkina Faso, while Lieutenant-Colonel Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba had made it clear that he did not intend to abdicate despite numerous demonstrations.
On Sunday, protesters supporting Ibrahim Traoré gathered in front of the French Embassy in Ouagadougou. They set fire to protective barriers in front of the embassy and threw stones inside the building on the roof of which French soldiers were positioned, according to an AFP journalist present on the spot. Tear gas was fired from inside the embassy, where calm has returned, to disperse the demonstrators.