The Burkinabe army reported at least 51 soldiers killed in an ambush by terrorists on Friday in Oudalan northern Burkina Faso along the borders with Mali. The army also reported that allegedly 160 terrorists were neutralized in the counterattacks. 

"Operations are continuing with an intensification of air actions that have made it possible to neutralize around 100 terrorists and destroy their equipment," the military statement read. 

"This figure is in addition to the 60 or so terrorists neutralized since the beginning of the response," it added. 

The army called on the Burkinabe population "to unite around the defense and security forces in these difficult times". 

Burkina Faso has been ravaged by a terrorist insurgency after spilling over from Mali. 

A terrorist insurgency that began in Burkina Faso's neighbor Mali in 2015 is being fought there.

Organizations estimate that more than 10,000 people have died as a result of the violence and that two million people have been displaced.

Two coups were attempted last year as a result of the military's frustration with the government's failure to contain the terrorism. 

Only last month did French troops withdraw from Burkina Faso after a month of protests and demands by the Burkinabe people.

Demonstrations were on the rise against French presence in Burkina Faso in January of this year, as protestors in Ouagadougou chanted anti-France slogans and held banners calling on the French army to leave the country. Some demonstrators have also set French flags on fire, while others used them as trash bags.

It is worth noting that France sent troops to the western African country in 2013, under the pretense of defeating jihadists in northern Mali and the Sahel, which never happened considering the increasing number of operations targeting Malian forces. The operation ended in February following the deterioration of France's ties with its ex-colony.