“Security expert Mahamoudou Sawadogo says that "the street (ed. public opinion) has accelerated the process" of withdrawing the (French) Sabre force from Burkina Faso. On Sunday, the Burkinabe government confirmed, through an official document, its request for the departure of French troops from its soil within a month. France has 400 special forces soldiers stationed in junta-ruled Burkina to battle a jihadist insurgency, but relations with France have deteriorated in recent months. Since the current military regime seized power in September there have been several demonstrations calling for the departure of the French ambassador, and the French troops there. IMAGES AND SOUNDBITES