A group of militants on Wednesday opened fire and killed 15 civilians during a baptism in Burkina Faso, reports on Thursday said.

The attack took place overnight in a village in the north of the country, the regional governor said in a statement.

Who exactly carried out the shooting and their motives were unclear.

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The western African country is located in the Sahel, where several terrorist groups are active, some of which have pledged allegiance to the Islamist militias al-Qaeda and Islamic State.

Burkina Faso has seen a significant increase in terrorist attacks since 2015.

An Irishman and two Spaniards were earlier killed in an attack on a military convoy at the end of April.

(dpa/NAN)

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