In mid-April, Mahmoud Barro, an influential imam from Bobo-Dioulasso, faced arrest under similar circumstances. Just days prior, on March 31, Mahamadi Baguian—a cyber-activist and government supporter—died in police custody in Ouagadougou after being detained.

The latest case involves Mohamed Kindo, an imam arrested around 2 p.m. on Tuesday, whose detention has reignited tensions. All three incidents share a common thread: opposition to a controversial bill introduced by Burkina Faso’s government. The proposed law seeks to regulate religious freedoms, prohibiting worship in public spaces such as government offices, hospitals, and military barracks.

Introduced during a Council of Ministers meeting on March 19, the bill has drawn sharp criticism from the Sunni Muslim community, with Imam Kindo emerging as a vocal opponent. His arrest, just before Eid al-Adha, triggered protests in the capital, with hundreds of followers taking to the streets. Clashes with security forces erupted, marked by tear gas deployment and heavy-handed crowd dispersal tactics in the city center.