According to a statement from the Niger defense ministry, at least 12 troops were killed during an attack by hundreds of armed rebels on motorbikes on Thursday (September 28, 2023) morning in the southwest of the country.
According to the statement, five soldiers died in an accident while driving to assist the unit that had been attacked, and seven soldiers were killed in action.
The attack occurred in Kandadji, around 190 kilometers (118 miles) from the capital Niamey, close to the Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger tri-border region, which has recently been the focal point of Islamist insurgencies in the Sahel.
According to sources including a senior military officer, who requested anonymity because they are not authorized to speak to the media, told Reuters that at least ten soldiers were killed.
Neither the sources nor the defense ministry say which group was responsible. Local affiliates of al Qaeda and Islamic State are active in the region and wage frequent attacks on soldiers and civilians.
The defense ministry statement said around a hundred insurgents were killed and their motorbikes and arms were destroyed. It gave no further details.
According to two security sources, the army used ground troops and helicopters to defend itself against the attack, one of which was hit but managed to land safely.
The military junta in charge of Niger overthrew the government in a coup in July, partially as a result of unhappiness with the deteriorating security situation. In the past three years, there have been two coups in neighboring Burkina Faso and Mali, respectively.
However, security analysts claim that under former President Mohamed Bazoum, who had attempted to interact with Islamists and the rural villages where they are rooted, attacks had been occurring in Niger.
Mid-August saw another attack in the southwest of Niger that claimed at least 17 soldiers’ lives.
Following weeks of pressure from the junta and public protests against the former colonial ruler, which had forces there to battle the insurgents, France announced on Sunday that it will remove its 1,500 troops from Niger by the end of the year.
In their demand that the troops leave, several hundred pro-junta activists assembled again in front of the French military base in Niamey on Thursday (September 28, 2023) to protest.
