Reports out of the West African nation of Burkina Faso say embattled President Roch Marc Christian Kabore and members of his government have been detained by mutineering soldiers.   

News outlets say there are reports of heavy fighting near the presidential palace in the capital, Ouagadougou.   

Burkina Faso has been embroiled in a conflict with terror groups linked to al-Qaida and Islamic State since 2015. Rumors of a coup have been rife for weeks after a military base in the north of the country was overrun by terrorists killing 49 military members.  

President Kabore fired members of his Cabinet and military leadership in December in response. 

The current unrest began early Sunday when heavy gunfire was heard inside Ouagadougou’s largest military base, Camp Sangoule Lamizana. VOA journalist Henry Wilkins was temporarily detained inside the camp and spoke to one of the organizers of the mutiny, who relayed a list of demands from the mutineers, including “more money and more troops” to aid in the fight against terrorism, along with better training and the organization of a permanent military unit on the front lines.

The mutineers also demanded the resignations of the military chief of staff and chief of the intelligence services, and better care of the wounded and families of soldiers who have died in the conflict. 

The apparent coup in Burkina Faso is the third in West Africa in the last 18 months, following that of Mali and neighboring Guinea.   

Some information for this report came from The Associated Press, Reuters and  Agence France-Presse.  
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