Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Russian agency: Russia will conduct a nuclear test if the US does
Al-Nakhalah: We are the rightful owners, and we must fight to retrieve our rights
Al-Nakhalah: The enemy and its allies must know that we can never surrender to their terms and diktats after all the sacrifices made
Al-Nakhalah: The prisoner exchange clause can be completed in the next few days, and thus we will have pulled the [explosion] fuse and removed the enemy's justifications for aggression
Al-Nakhalah: The Resistance has expressed its willingness to negotiate on the basis that there are items that can be dealt with positively, the first of which is the prisoner exchange item
Al-Nakhalah: Trump's plan entails the Palestinian people's declaration of complete surrender to the enemy
PIJ Secretary-General, Ziyad al-Nakhalah, in an address aired on Al Mayadeen: The Resistance is engaging in a fierce negotiating battle under the so-called Trump plan
Russian Federation Council approves joint military cooperation agreement with Cuba
Al-Nunu: Today, the lists of prisoners required to be released, the agreed-upon criteria and numbers, were exchanged
Al-Nunu from Sharm el-Sheikh: Negotiations focused on mechanisms for implementing an end to the war, the withdrawal of occupation forces from the Gaza Strip, and the exchange of prisoners

Who Killed Africa’s Che Guevara?

  • By Al Mayadeen Net
  • Source: Agencies + Al Mayadeen Net
  • 11 Oct 2021 23:47
  • 4 Shares
4 Min Read

The trial is deemed as one of the most highly anticipated African trials ever.

  • x
  • Thomas Sankara changed Burkina Faso forever.
    Thomas Sankara changed Burkina Faso forever.

On 15 October 1987, pan-Africanist leader and president of Burkina Faso, Thomas Sankara, was shot dead.

He was only 37.

Africa’s Guevara

Sankara, alias “Africa’s Che Guevara”, was a principled Marxist revolutionary who seized power in a coup at the age of 33. That year, his nation was reshaped and began experiencing a hopeful yet short-lived reign.

Before Thomas Sankara’s arrival, Burkina Faso was called Upper Volta by France. Refuting this colonial naming, Sankara changed it to the current name which means “the land of upright people” in Mossi, the nation’s most spoken language.

Outlining his political views shortly after becoming president, he said “the revolution’s main objective is to destroy imperialist domination and exploitation.”

His actions rang true to his words, as he fought inequality, expanded access to education, led the first AIDS awareness campaign in Africa, redistributed land, and banned female genital mutilation and polygamy.

To top it all off, he forced government officials to give up perks such as first-class tickets, and did not bow down to the demands of former colonial power, France.

Related News

Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger to withdraw from ICC, cite 'repression'

Why Trump's Sahel strategy is likely to fail: Responsible Statecraft

His assassination

On the fateful day of his assassination, Sankara was only 4 years in rule when a hit squad led by his close friend, Blaise Compaoré, shot him and 12 others in the capital, Ouagadougou.

The assassination shook Africa to the ground: Ghana declared one week of mourning, while the Congolese radio lamented the loss of ''a worthy son of Africa'' and decried '' Compaoré's treason.''

Compaoré, who was at the time Sankara’s Minister of State, then went on to succeed the Panfricanist leader and stayed in power for 27 years.

The deed that went unpunished for 34 years is now haunting its perpetrators, as a trial in Burkina Faso has finally opened on Monday.

14 men accused of orchestrating the assassination are on trial in the nation’s capital, with Compaoré heading the list, despite being tried in absentia; He lives in exile in the Ivory Coast, and all extradition attempts thus far have remained ineffectual. 

  • Who Killed Africa’s Che Guevara?
    Blaise Compaoré, former president of Burkina Faso and murderer of Sankara, is being tried in absentia.

The trial has been described by several media outlets as one of the most highly anticipated African trials ever.

For years, allegations claiming France’s involvement in the assassination circulated, notably as Compaoré’s tenure was characterized by vehement support of “Françafrique,” an arrangement allowing France to continue pulling the political strings of its previous African colonies despite the official ending of its colonial presence. 

French President Emmanuel Macron has promised in 2017 to declassify all documents pertaining to Sankara’s case, with three batches of documents shared with Burkina Faso since then. Yet none originate from the office of the French president at the time, Francois Mitterrand.

Sankara’s widow, Mariam, told journalists during her arrival at the hearing that “it is a moment we have been waiting for.” 

After ousting Compaoré in 2014, the people of Burkina Faso elected their current president Roch Marc Christian Kaboré twice, who went to honor Sankara’s legacy by erecting a statue of the assassinated leader and opening a mausoleum, a cinema, and a media library in his name.

Today’s Burkina Faso is polarized and suffering from violence and desperation. The trial could give the nation a glimmer of hope by revealing the culprit behind their leader’s murder, and the colonial forces that stood behind them. 

  • Africa
  • Burkina Faso
  • Emmanuel Macron
  • Colonialism
  • Thomas Sankara

Most Read

Tucker Carlson speaks at a memorial for Charlie Kirk, Sunday, September 21, 2025, at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona (AP)

Tucker Carlson: Israeli officers gave orders on Iran inside Pentagon

  • Politics
  • 2 Oct 2025
A Hamas fighter in combat fatigues stands before the ceremony for the handover of Israeli captives to the Red Cross in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip, Saturday, February 22, 2025 (AP)

Hamas responds to Trump plan, backs Gaza withdrawal, exchange

  • Politics
  • 3 Oct 2025
Mossad’s secret role in Aldo Moro’s 1978 murder revealed

Mossad’s secret role in Aldo Moro’s 1978 murder exposed

  • Politics
  • 5 Oct 2025
Al-Quds Brigades strike a command and control center north of Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, in an undated screengrab from the al-Quds Brigades military media

Gaza resistance announces major operations against Israeli forces

  • Politics
  • 1 Oct 2025

Coverage

All
War on Gaza

Read Next

All
Retired Israeli General Brik says Israel has reached point of no return.
Politics

Retired Israeli General Brik: 'Israel has reached point of no return'

Depleted by foreign wars, US seeks to re-arm for another confrontation
Politics

Depleted by foreign wars, US seeks to re-arm for another confrontation

Gaza’s newborns gasp for life as hospitals collapse amid Israeli war
Health

Gaza newborns gasp for life, share oxygen masks amid collapsed system

UK arms exports to 'Israel' reach record high despite ban calls
Politics

UK arms exports to 'Israel' reach record high despite ban calls

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS