It has ordered them to leave the country within 48 hours, according to a foreign ministry letter viewed by Reuters and Agence France-Presse (AFP) news agencies. Burkina Faso’s government did not provide details of the allegations against the expelled diplomats, who it named as Gwenaelle Habouzit, Herve Fournier and Guillaume Reisacher. Since coming to power in a September 2022 coup, Burkina Faso’s military government has pulled away from France, its former colonial power, kicking out French troops, suspending some French media, and repeatedly accusing French officials of espionage. On December 1 last year, Burkinabe authorities arrested four French officials with diplomatic passports in the capital, Ouagadougou, and charged them with spying, according to Le Monde newspaper. The officials, who France claims were working as IT support staff, are under house arrest, according to Burkina Faso security sources.
SOURCE: AL JAZEERA