This is contained in a foreign ministry note that was sent to the French embassy dated Tuesday, and seen by FRANCE 24 on Thursday.

Three French diplomats have been expelled by Burkina Faso and told to leave the country within 48 hours, for "subversive activities".

The three were declared "persona non grata" by the foreign ministry.

At least four French IT workers with diplomatic passports and visas were in December 2023 arrested in Burkina Faso''s capital, Ouagadougou.

The arrest was said to be in a context of very tense relations between Burkina Faso and France, a French diplomatic source said on Wednesday, denying a media report that they were intelligence agents.

On December 1, four French officials, holders of diplomatic passports and visas, were arrested in Ouagadougou by the Burkinabè police.

Worsening relations between the junta in Burkina Faso and former coloniser France have recently led to expulsion orders for diplomatic officials.

Last year, expulsion orders were given to French officials, including the French ambassador.

French news magazine Jeune Afrique recently published an article saying that Burkina Faso had arrested four agents working for France''s external intelligence agency DGSE, the equivalent of America''s CIA or Britain''s MI6.

The four technicians were in Burkina Faso to carry out a computer maintenance operation for the benefit of the French embassy".

Relations between France and Burkina have been considerably degraded since Captain Ibrahim Traoré came to power in September 2022 by a coup d''état - the second in eight months.

After obtaining the withdrawal of French forces, Ouagadougou denounced a 1961 military agreement with France in March. The French ambassador to Ouagadougou who was recalled after the coup d''état of September 2022, has not been replaced.

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