By Rodrigue Forku

YAOUNDE, Cameroon

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed 'outrage' on Saturday for the killing of more than 100 people, including children, in Burkina Faso.

Guterres "strongly condemns the heinous attack and underscores the urgent need for the international community to redouble support to Member States in the fight against violent extremism and its unacceptable human toll," his spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement.

The UN head also expressed his deepest condolences to victims’ families and the government and people of the West African nation.

He wished those injured a speedy recovery and conveyed the UN's full support to authorities in their efforts to overcome the threats to peace, stability and unity of Burkina Faso.

The attack by unidentified assailants occurred in a village in Yagha province in the Sahel region overnight Friday.

Attackers set fire to houses and a marketplace belonging to residents in the region.

Authorities are fearing that the death toll will rise.

President Roch Marc Christian Kabore announced three days of national mourning beginning late Saturday.

The West African country has been marred by repeated terror attacks that have claimed lives in the past five years and displaced thousands, who are also facing a serious humanitarian crisis.

Burkina Faso, Niger and Mali in the Sahel are at the epicenter of one of the world's fastest-growing displacement and protection crises.