Burkina Faso to open trial on 1987 Sankara assassination

Ex-president among 14 who face charges in killing of former leader Thomas Sankara 34 years ago.

The trial of 14 men, including a former president, is set to begin in Burkina Faso over the assassination of the country’s revered revolutionary leader Thomas Sankara 34 years ago.

In the trial opening on Monday, former President Blaise Compaore and 13 others face an array of charges in the death of Sankara, described by his followers as the African Che Guevara.

The killing of Sankara, an icon of pan-Africanism, has for years cast a dark shadow over the Sahel state.