Ibrahim Traoré

Ibrahim Traoré was born in Kéra, Bondokuy, Mouhoun Province, c. 1988.[2][3][8] After receiving his primary education in Bondokuy, he attended a high school in Bobo-Dioulasso where he became known as being "quiet" and "very talented".[2] From 2006,[2] he studied geology at the University of Ouagadougou[3] where he was part of the Association of Muslim Students[2][9] and the Marxist Association nationale des étudiants du Burkina (ANEB). In the latter, he rose to delegate and became known for defending his classmates in disputes.[3] He graduated from the university with honors.[2] Traoré joined the army of Burkina Faso in 2009,[2] and graduated from the Georges-Namoano Military Academy.[3] He was sent to Morocco for anti-aircraft training before being transferred to an infantry unit in Kaya, a town in Burkina Faso's north.[2]

Promoted to lieutenant in 2014, Traoré joined MINUSMA, a United Nations peacekeeping force involved in the Mali War. In 2018, he was cited as one of the MINUSMA soldiers who "showed courage" during major rebel attacks in the Tombouctou Region.[2] He subsequently returned to Burkina Faso where he assisted in operations against the escalating jihadist insurgency.[2] Traoré fought at Djibo,[3] in the "Otapuanu offensive" of 2019, and several other counter-insurgency operations in the country's north.[2] He was promoted to captain in 2020.[9][2] Traoré later claimed that he became disillusioned with his country's leadership around this time, as he saw the widespread lack of equipment of Burkinabe soldiers, while politicans were handing out "suitcases of money" for bribery. He gradually became the spokesman for soldiers stationed in the north who were frustrated over their government.[3]

Traoré was part of the group of army officers that supported the January 2022 Burkina Faso coup d'état and brought the Patriotic Movement for Safeguard and Restoration military junta to power.[6][5] From March 2022, he served as the head of an artillery regiment in Kaya.[2][5] Whether he was ever associated with the "Cobra" special forces, a counterterrorist unit founded in 2019, is disputed. According to several sources such as BBC, Al Jazeera, and Die Tageszeitung, he was part of the unit at some point.[9][4][10] However, news magazine Jeune Afrique stated that he was never associated with the "Cobras".[5]

Many supporters of the January coup became dissatisfied with the performance of Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba, the junta's leader, regarding his inability to contain the jihadist insurgency. Traoré later claimed that he and other officers had tried to get Damiba to "refocus" on the rebellion, but eventually opted to overthrow him as "his ambitions were diverting away from what we set out to do".[6] The dissatisfaction about the situation was highest among younger officers who fought against the rebels at the frontlines.[11] In addition, there were delays in pay for the "Cobra" troops.[9] When the plotters launched their coup on 30 September, Traoré still held the rank of Captain.[6] The operation was carried out with support of the "Cobra" unit.[4][11] In the direct aftermath of the coup, Traoré declared himself the new head of the Patriotic Movement for Safeguard and Restoration.[11] On 6 October, he also assumed the position of Interim President as "Head of State, Supreme Head of the Armed Forces".[1] He initially promised to hold democratic elections in July 2024.[12]

As president, Traoré maintained his enigmatic and very formal behavior for which he had already been known before rising to power. He kept a tight control on his communication and carefully tried to present himself as a proper war leader, possibly to avoid the poor public image of his predecessors. His presidency has also seen an increase of pro-government propaganda in Burkinabe traditional media and social media. Politically, Le Monde journalist Sophie Douce described Traoré as influenced by Marxism and pan-Africanism.[3]

In February 2023, Traoré's government expelled the French forces assisting in fighting the local insurgency from Burkina Faso.[13] He subsequently declared that "We really want to look at other horizons, because we want win-win partnerships", supporting the diversification of Burkina Faso's international partnerships. Shortly after, Traoré's government expressed support for a federation with Mali and both invited Guinea. All three countries are under military leadership and if it were to become a union it would be the largest country ruled by military junta.[14] To replace French military support, Traoré forged closer ties to Turkey and Russia.[3]

In April, he declared a "general mobilisation" of the population to support the military, as rebel forces continued to increase the rate of their attacks.[15] Traoré publicly pledged to reconquer all rebel-held areas and that there would be no negotiations until the insurgency had been greatly weakened.[3] In the following month, Traoré questioned the planned restoration of democracy for 2024, stating that elections could not be held unless the insurgents were pushed back and the security situation had been improved.[16]

On 26 September, dissatisfied elements of the military unsuccessfully attempted to overthrow Traoré.[17]