Ibrahim Traoré in the context of Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba

A coup d'état took place in Burkina Faso on 30 September 2022, removing Interim President Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba over his alleged inability to deal with the country's Islamist insurgency. Damiba had come to power in a coup d'état eight months earlier. Captain Ibrahim Traoré took over as interim leader.

On 26 September 2023, dissidents of the Burkina Faso Armed Forces attempted to overthrow the ruling military junta led by Ibrahim Traoré, who came to power a year earlier.

Blaise Compaoré (French: [blɛz kɔ̃paɔʁe]; born 3 February 1951) is a Burkinabé politician and former military officer who served as the second president of Burkina Faso from 1987 until his government was overthrown in 2014. The longest-serving president in Burkinabé history, Compaoré previously served as the Minister of Justice from 1985 to 1987.

Born and raised in Ziniaré, Compaoré joined the Burkina Faso Armed Forces (then known as Upper Voltan Armed Forces) at the age of 20 in 1971 where he rose through the ranks. Compaoré was a close associate of his predecessor and the country's first President, Thomas Sankara, who appointed Compaoré as Minister of Justice in 1985. The pair were seen as close allies until Compaoré led a coup d'état during which Sankara was killed two years later in 1987. Aged 36 when assuming office, Compaoré was the third youngest Burkinabé president, after Ibrahim Traoré and Sankara.

The Patriotic Movement for Safeguard and Restoration (PMSR) has been the ruling military junta of Burkina Faso since the January 2022 Burkina Faso coup d'état. Originally it was led by Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba, but he was overthrown by dissatisfied junta members during the September 2022 Burkina Faso coup d'état. In his place, Capt. Ibrahim Traoré was installed as the leading figure. Aside from Traoré and Sorgho (the group's official spokesperson), other MPSR members are not known to the public.