Seven soldiers were killed in an attack by suspected jihadists in western Niger on Thursday, and five others died in a traffic accident during an intervention in response to the attack, the defense minister said in a press release.
On Thursday, in the Tillabéri (West) region, “a unit of Operation Almahaou on a security mission in Kandaji was violently attacked by several hundred terrorists,” wrote Minister and General Salifou Mody.
Seven soldiers died “in combat,” he added. “During the intervention” in response to this attack, “a tragic road accident occurred in which five of our brave soldiers were lost,” the statement said. According to the document, seven people were injured and evacuated to a hospital.
“Three borders” zone
The attackers’ motorcycles and weapons “were destroyed in the Tijiane area,” 20 km northeast of Ayorou, in the same region, the minister said. The minister reiterates that “a search operation is underway to locate the enemy.”
Located in the so-called “three-border zone” between Niger, Burkina Faso and Mali, the Tillabéri region is a haven for jihadists from the Sahel, particularly those of the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara (EIGS).
The perpetrators of a coup in Niger on July 26 justified their actions with the “deterioration of the security situation”.