Soldiers stand at attention during the deployment ceremony for the 164th Military Police Company, 793rd Military Police Battalion, 2d Engineer Brigade, U.S. Army Alaska, at the Alaska National Guard Armory, Thursday, Jan. 23, 2014, on Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska. The Soldiers are deploying for about five months to the island of Guam to provide site security for a facility there. As part of the deployment ceremony the company was awarded the prestigious Command Sgt. Maj. Farley Award for being the best military police company in U.S. Army Pacific. The award was presented by retired Army Command Sgt. Maj. Mark L. Farley himself, who was the first enlisted military police Soldier to lead as the senior enlisted adviser at the 2, 3 and 4-star level commands, eventually retiring as the command sergeant major of U.S. Army Europe. (U.S. Air Force photo by Justin Connaher/Released)
Burkina Faso’s military government has announced a drive to recruit another 5,000 soldiers to help in the fight against jihadists.
Defence Minister Colonel Kassoum Coulibaly said the recruits must be between 20 and 35 years old and be prepared to serve in the army for at least five years.
A week ago more than 50 soldiers were killed in the north of the country.
At least 15 others were reported to have died on Monday in an ambush by militants affiliated with al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group.