Burkina Faso President Appoints Former Head Of Nuclear Testing Agency As New PM

JAKARTA - Burkina Faso's President Roch Kabore on Friday appointed the former head of the country's nuclear testing agency, Lassina Zerbo, as prime minister. Earlier on Wednesday, he fired Christophe Dabire.

The appointment and firing of the prime minister comes amid an escalating security crisis, which has killed thousands and sparked a wave of protests.

The pressured Kabore sacked Christophe Dabire in the throes of a leadership reshuffle, including in the military.

Quoted from Antara, Lassina Zerbo is a physicist who studied in Paris, Canada and the United States.

He served eight years as head of the Preparatory Committee for the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Organization and then resigned in August.

Burkina Faso is at the heart of an insurgency by an Islamist group, whose actions have also spread to many areas of the arid Sahel.

During the uprising, thousands of people have lost their lives and millions have been forced to flee.

Despite countermeasures by France - the former ruler of the colony - and regional forces, attacks have continued to threaten the safety of local people.