Jihadist groups have killed around 50 civilians in three attacks in northern Burkina Faso since May, the NGO Human Rights Watch (HRW) reported on Monday, urging the military regime to ensure better protection of the population.

Burkina Faso, ruled for nearly three years by a junta, has been undermined by deadly attacks by armed jihadist groups affiliated with Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State.

"The Al-Qaeda-affiliated Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (GSIM) attacked the town of Djibo in the Sahel region on May 11 and the village of Youba in the North region on August 3, killing at least 40 civilians," HRW said in a statement.

"The Islamic State in the Sahel (IS) attacked a civilian convoy delivering humanitarian aid to the besieged town of Gorom Gorom in the Sahel region on July 28, killing at least nine civilians," she added.

Residents of the village of Youba, for example, explained to HRW that the jihadists wanted to "punish the local community for not obeying the GSIM's instructions to abandon certain crops" which, if too high, could hinder the jihadists' activities.

In a response to HRW on August 15, the GSIM assured that it "never intentionally targets civilians," citing "unfounded allegations," or "at most, incidents caused by stray bullets, of which we are not aware."

Ilaria Allegrozzi, HRW researcher specializing in the Sahel, believes that "the authorities must ensure better protection for all civilians in danger."

Upon taking power at the end of September 2022, junta leader Captain Ibrahim Traoré promised to restore security within a few months, but the attacks - targeting soldiers and civilians - have not abated.

HRW calls on the authorities to "investigate abuses, particularly those committed by the military and allied militias, and prosecute those responsible."

The NGO notes that "the government has increasingly targeted civilians during counter-insurgency operations."

The Burkinabe army and its civilian auxiliaries, the Volunteers for the Defense of the Fatherland (VDP), are regularly accused by NGOs, including HRW, of committing massacres of civilians.

The NGO Acled, which records victims of conflicts around the world, reports more than 26,000 people killed in jihadist attacks - civilians and soldiers - since 2015 in Burkina Faso, more than half of them in the last three years.