Description Thomas Isidore Nol Sankara (21 December 1949 15 October 1987) was a Burkinab military captain, Marxist revolutionary, pan-Africanist theorist, and President of Burkina Faso from 1983 to 1987. Viewed by supporters as a charismatic and iconic figure of revolution, he is commonly referred to as 'Africa's Che Guevara'.