17 killed in Niger in first major jihadi attack since coup, fuelling Western fears
- The ambush is a sign of possible escalation, as militant factions move into the security void caused by the overthrow of the country’s democratic government
- New US envoy Kathleen FitzGibbon is expected to arrive in Niamey within days – the US has not had an ambassador in Niger for nearly two years
Insurgents killed 17 soldiers and wounded nearly 24 in the first major attack in half a year against the army in Niger, where Western powers fear a coup by the elite presidential guard last month is weakening a rare ally against jihadi violence in West Africa’s Sahel region.
Niger was one of the last democratic countries in the region south of the Sahara and France and the US have about 2,500 military personnel there who were training Niger’s forces. France also conducted joint operations with its former colony, but since the coup Paris and Washington have suspended military operations, giving the jihadis more breathing room.
A military detachment was attacked on Tuesday afternoon as it moved between the villages of Boni and Torodi in the Tillaberi region, the ministry of defence said on state television. The wounded were evacuated to the capital, Niamey.
It was the first major attack against Niger’s army in six months, a worrying sign of possible escalation, said Wassim Nasr, a journalist and senior research fellow at the Soufan Centre, a think tank.
“What we are witnessing today is both jihadi warring factions, the Islamic State group and [al-Qaeda affiliate Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin], marking their territory because of the security void caused by the coup. This definitely should be seen in the context of the ongoing war between the two groups,” he said.
