Prosecutors in junta-led Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger have launched investigations against French journalist and researcher Wassim Nasr, accusing him of being an "apologist for terrorism" over his analysis of jihadist attacks.

Prosecutors from the judicial divisions on terrorism in Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso all issued the same statement apparently in coordination, aired on their national televisions late on Wednesday (Sep.

Burkina Faso's junta said it had uncovered an international plot to overthrow it and which included the massacre in August of hundreds of civilians by Islamist insurgents.Some critics and analysts however said the junta's statement was an attempt to deflect blame for the killings and security situation in the country.