The director of the International NGO Safety Organization (INSO) in Burkina Faso, French national Jean-Christophe Pegon, was detained by the country’s State Security Service on July 28 on suspicion of espionage and has since been held at an undisclosed location, SİA reports.
INSO provides security-related information support to humanitarian organizations and operates in 26 countries. Its activities in Burkina Faso were officially suspended for 3 months on July 31. Authorities accuse the organization of collecting sensitive information without authorization.
Reports indicate that 4 Burkinabe employees of INSO were also detained by the same agency last week. The French Ministry of Foreign Affairs has declined to comment, while INSO stated that Pegon is in good health but refrained from sharing further details due to the confidentiality of ongoing talks.
Authorities in Burkina Faso reportedly view the organization’s collection of data on clashes between jihadist groups and the army as espionage.
This is not the first such case. Last summer, another French national working for an Australian mining company in Burkina Faso was arrested on espionage charges and released 2 weeks later. In 2023–2024, 4 agents of the French intelligence service (DGSE) were also held in Ouagadougou for more than a year before being released through Moroccan mediation.
Observers note that the case unfolds against a backdrop of mounting political pressure from military regimes in the region against France.
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