President of Burkina Faso appoints new prime-minister

The government in Burkina Faso has announced the appointment of a new prime-minister following the resignation of Christophe Dabire.

The new head of government is Lassina Zerbo, the former head of a top nuclear watchdog.

Facing the growing threat of jihadist insurgents, President Kabore appealed for help from all.

"Our defence and security forces, as well as our volunteers for the defence of the country, need our support. This is why I am appealing to all the sons and daughters of our nation to contribute to the war effort, each according to his or her means. Our government will receive the necessary instructions for the establishment of a mechanism for the collection and transparent management of contributions", appealed the President.

The six-year-old campaign of violence has claimed around 2,000 lives and forced 1.4 million people from their homes.

"In the face of this legitimate anger generated by the heavy human toll of terrorism, and in view of the number of internally displaced persons, I invite the people of Burkina Faso to make no mistake about their adversary or their enemy. As supreme commander of the armed forces, I will never be caught short in our common will to defeat the forces of evil that use our territory to commit the most abominable trades and crimes", promised President Kabore.

According to AFP, at least 13 Burkina Faso defence volunteers were killed in an attack in the north of the country on Thursday.

The peak of the deadly violence came on November 14 when 57 people, 53 of them police officers, were killed in the north of the country.