OUAGADOUGOU, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Hundreds of school teachers on Friday held a silent protest in Burkina Faso's capital Ouagadougou against rising terrorism in the country.
The march was part of a nationwide demonstration called for by the unions of teachers, after a teacher was killed by unidentified gunmen on March 3 in a school in Koursayel village in Soum province close to the border with Mali and Niger.
Teachers marched to the Ministry of National Education and Literacy, where they staged a sit-in to express their anger.
According to bystanders, a similar silent march protest was held in Koloko municipality, 400 km west of Ouagadougou and close to the border with Mali.
Unions demand all public and private schools in Soum be kept safe so as to ensure normal teaching activities.
Beginning this week, public agents of all sectors of Soum province suspended activities for days to protest against the upsurge of terrorism in the area. Some even abandoned their posts, citing threats from the Burkinabe jihadist Malam Ibrahim Dicko.
Malam Ibrahim Dicko had claimed responsibility for several previous attacks in the country. Among those was the one on the Tongomaye and Baraboule police stations in the province on Feb. 27 where one person was injured.
Northern Burkina Faso has been facing an escalation of jihadist attacks over the past few years.
