Burkina Faso Reinstates Death Penalty for Terrorism, Treason

Burkina Faso's parliament has unanimously voted to reinstate the death penalty for crimes including terrorism, espionage, and treason, ending a six-year abolition. The decision by the West African nation's legislature sees the adoption of a new penal code that reintroduces capital punishment.

Justice Minister Edasso Rodrigue Bayala confirmed that all 71 members of the legislature supported the measure. The death penalty had been abolished in 2018 under the previous democratically elected government. Human Rights Watch reports that the last known execution in Burkina Faso occurred in 1988.

The military junta, which took power in a 2022 coup, had previously approved a bill to reinstate capital punishment in December. This move drew criticism from human rights organizations such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, who expressed concerns that it could be used repressively and to suppress dissent.

Burkina Faso, a country of 23 million, is currently grappling with a significant security crisis marked by the presence of militant groups affiliated with al-Qaida and the Islamic State group. Both government forces and these militant groups have faced accusations of war crimes and crimes against humanity from human rights organizations. A Human Rights Watch report indicated that government forces were responsible for more civilian deaths than jihadis between 2023 and 2025.

In recent years, the military junta has been accused of targeting dissidents, including the detention of human rights defenders and journalists. Earlier this year, all political parties in the country were dissolved, and their governing laws were scrapped.