At least five members of Burkina Faso's Volunteers for the Defence of the Nation (VDP), civilian militias assisting security forces against a jihadist insurgency, have been killed in an attack, a local elected official said Wednesday. Armed individuals on Tuesday attacked the Anra artisanal gold mine in the village of Pelhoure in the north of the country, "causing five deaths among the volunteers," the official told AFP on condition of anonymity, while a VDP leader confirmed the attack. ab-pgf/sst/erc/tgb