A 28-year-old Ghanaian, Zakaria Abubakari from Savelugu, has recounted how he spent 77 days in detention in Burkina Faso after being arrested during a military operation.

Mr Zakaria said he was arrested on February 26, 2026, at about 7:00 p.m. in Kongoussi while staying in the house of a Mossi man he did not personally know.

According to him, he was travelling through the area on his way to an undisclosed destination in Mali when armed soldiers entered the house and arrested him.

He said he was blindfolded after the arrest and taken to a military detention facility in Kaya, where he spent 13 days.

Mr Zakaria said he was later transferred to another undisclosed location, where he remained in detention for about 50 days before being moved to Ouagadougou. He spent additional days in police custody there before being released in late April.

He said security officials repeatedly questioned him about his presence in Kongoussi, an area affected by the activities of non-state armed groups, including Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin.

According to Mr Zakaria, investigations found no evidence linking him to any jihadist group.

He, however, said his confiscated belongings, including his clothes, were not returned to him.

“They only took me to a bus station barefoot and empty-handed and told me to return to Ghana,” he said.

Mr Zakaria said he received support from some people who helped him with transport fare after hearing about his situation.

He has since reunited with his family in Ghana.

The incident comes as Ghanaian intelligence agencies continue searching for another Ghanaian, Ibrahim Sadat, a native of Wuru in the Sissala District of the Upper West Region, who was reportedly arrested by Burkinabe security forces on March 3, 2026, after crossing into Kounou in Burkina Faso.

It also follows the disappearance of seven Ghanaians from Bawku Municipality who reportedly travelled to Bittou in Burkina Faso in 2023 for a cattle identification exercise after being invited by alleged Burkinabe military personnel.

The seven were reportedly intercepted by armed men in Nohao and have not been found since.