Burkina Faso Crisis: Disinformation Fuels Growing International Security Threat

Burkina Faso has emerged as the new epicenter of global terrorism, claiming the top position on the 2024 Global Terrorism Index Scale—the first time in thirteen years that neither Iraq nor Afghanistan holds this grim distinction. The West African nation has been devastated by sophisticated jihadist attacks on major towns like Djibo, where extremists employ drones and anti-aircraft weapons against government forces.

Yet in stark contrast to this harsh reality, the regime of President Ibrahim Traoré has constructed an elaborate alternate digital universe. In this fabricated world, deepfake videos show international celebrities like Justin Bieber and Beyoncé expressing adoration for Traoré—celebrities who likely cannot locate Burkina Faso on a map, let alone understand its complex political landscape.

Traoré styles himself as an anti-Western, pro-Russian pan-Africanist leader following in the tradition of Thomas Sankara, the country’s revolutionary former president. Like his counterparts in neighboring Mali and Niger, Traoré portrays his junta as a necessary correction to failed Western-backed democratic governance in Africa. While his grievances against former colonial powers have legitimate foundations, the scale of state-sponsored disinformation under his leadership threatens long-term political stability across the entire Sahel region.

What distinguishes Burkina Faso from its neighbors is the complete absence of domestic non-jihadist opposition. Unlike Mali and Niger, which maintain some ethnic resistance coalitions providing counter-narratives to government propaganda, Burkina Faso has effectively eliminated independent civil society and media through intense repression.

The country’s educational crisis compounds this information vacuum. With a literacy rate of just 34.9 percent—significantly below the sub-Saharan average of 67.7 percent—and declining school enrollment, the population lacks the critical thinking tools needed to evaluate government claims. This educational deficit creates ideal conditions for testing advanced disinformation techniques.

Artificial intelligence plays a central role in the regime’s propaganda machine. Beyond celebrity deepfakes, Traoré has appropriated footage of construction projects from countries like Algeria, falsely claiming them as domestic achievements. These digital deceptions serve to distract from the regime’s controversial “Volunteers for Defense of the Homeland” program, which arms civilians to combat jihadists but has led to widespread violence against Muslim minorities, fueling ethnic tensions and inadvertently boosting jihadist recruitment.

Foreign powers have actively contributed to Burkina Faso’s information crisis. Russia has conducted at least nineteen distinct disinformation campaigns targeting the Sahel region as of March 2024, while China has implemented similar operations. These efforts have successfully diminished Western influence while obscuring atrocities committed by Russian private military contractors like the Wagner Group and its successor, Africa Corps.

The consequences extend beyond propaganda wars. Burkina Faso is becoming a regional hub for jihadist operations, with violence spilling into neighboring countries like Togo and Benin. The junta’s harsh counterterrorism approach, combined with aggressive anti-democratic messaging, prevents social healing and sustainable governance.

Western nations bear significant responsibility for creating conditions that allowed Traoré’s rise. The failure of French-led counterterrorism operations, particularly Operation Barkhane’s decade-long mission with its vague objectives, generated deep resentment among Sahelians. Further inflaming tensions is the neo-colonial economic system in which twelve former French colonies, including Burkina Faso, must maintain 50 percent of their foreign assets in Paris.

“Perhaps everything we’ve done has surprised you, hasn’t it? More changes might still surprise you. And it’s not just about currency. We will break all ties that keep us in slavery,” Traoré declared in February 2024, capturing widespread frustration with France’s enduring economic influence.

As Traoré clings to power in Ouagadougou, supported by Russian and Chinese disinformation techniques, Burkina Faso edges closer to failed statehood. Addressing the spread of jihadism and rebuilding state capacity should be prioritized not only for humanitarian reasons but to prevent extremist groups from establishing footholds closer to Atlantic shores—and ultimately, American interests.