Burkinabe security dismantles al-Qaeda linked recruiters ring

An extremist network that had been trying to recruit people for al-Qaeda linked movements in the Sahel has been dismantled in Burkina Faso.

This is according to the AP news agency which quoted Burkinabe officials as saying they are still pursuing three other suspects who are nationals from the country.

Security officers shot at one man who was carrying a gun and a grenade on Saturday following information they received from the public.

In January, Burkina Faso suffered a terrorist attack on a hotel in Ouagadougou, that claimed the lives of at least 30 people.

The country has become a target for terrorist organisations operating in West Africa making it a new front-line in the fight against jihadists.

Public prosecutor Maiza Compaore said an investigation into the recruitment networks had been opened and that important clues had already been found, including several telephones.

Burkina Faso shares its western border with Mali, whose lawless desert north serves as a base for range of secular militias, al Qaeda-linked groups and a new body pledging allegiance to the Islamic State.

President Roch Marc Christian Kabore, elected in November after order was restored following a six-day coup attempt, is facing a rising number of attacks in remote border areas.