Chairperson of the African Union (AU) Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat, on Thursday condemned a recent terrorist attack that targeted a military base in Burkina Faso that left at least 24 soldiers dead.

Terrorists on Monday attacked a military base in northern Burkina Faso, killing at least 24 soldiers while injuring a dozen others.

“The Chairperson condemns, in the strongest terms possible, the heinous terrorist attack on August 19 on a military base in Koutougou in the north of Burkina Faso that left at least 24 soldiers dead and others wounded,” an AU statement issued on Thursday read.

He reiterated the AU’s solidarity with the government and people of Burkina Faso “in their efforts in preventing and countering terrorism and violent extremism in all their manifestations in the country.”

He further reaffirmed the pan African bloc’s “strong rejection of all acts of terrorism and violent extremism and stresses the need for enhanced cooperation among the countries of the region and their security services to prevent and counter-terrorism and violent extremism.”

The chairperson expressed his “confidence in the solidarity of the Sahel countries in combating terrorism in the Sahel region, and the efforts of the Nouakchott Process on Enhanced Security Cooperation to strengthen sharing of intelligence in the region in the fight against terrorism and extremism.”