Burkina Faso, a country located in the Sahel region in western Africa, has fought an armed conflict against Islamist insurgents such as Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State since 2015, as a result of the spillover of the war in neighboring Mali.

[5] Around 30 minutes prior to the massacre, armed Islamists passed through Nondin yelling "Allah Akbar" (God is great).

A similar scenario played out, where soldiers rounded up civilians, separated them into groups based on gender, and then shot at them and those who attempted to hide or flee.

[8] A villager said that the soldiers called for the residents and began opening fire as people were moving towards them, killing 179, including 36 children and four pregnant women.

[5] A day after the massacres, family members of the victims traveled to the gendarmerie brigade in Ouahigouya and made a statement about the attacks, prompting high court prosecutor Aly Benjamin Coulibaly to announce an investigation.

[9][1] The HRW, citing reports from 23 witnesses, three activists, three members of international organizations, and three other people, concluded that the Burkina Faso Armed Forces was responsible for the massacres.

[13][14] Burkina Faso communications spokesperson Tonssira Myrian Corine Sanou warned other media organizations to not report on the event.

[16] Their response sparked protests outside the US embassy in Ouagadougou, where hundreds of shopkeepers and workers marched towards the building with Burkinabe and Russian flags, chanting anti-imperialist slogans and defending their armed forces.