Two attacks in Burkina Faso's volatile east have killed at least 12 people with soldiers and civilians among the victims, local and security sources told AFP on Monday.

Burkina Faso has been plagued by insurgent attacks in the past 10 years, leaving an estimated 26,000 soldiers and civilians dead.

The years of violence have forced more than two million people to flee their homes, according to the latest available UN refugee agency figures from March 2023.

"On March 14, hundreds of terrorists attacked a police detachment based in Yamba," a town near Fada N'Gourma, the capital of the eastern region, a police source told AFP.

'Heavy' toll

"The toll is heavy. There are more than a dozen dead and several injured," the source said, adding that the victims were mainly from the police and a volunteer force helping security troops.

Another police source confirmed the attack but said 16 people had been killed.

The source said another attack the following day in Foutouri near the Niger border killed several civilians.