Armed bandits killed 18 civilians in western Niger, government says

Africa, News February 23, 2022 , by IRIA No Comments

Niger government said on February 22 that unidentified “armed bandits” killed 18 civilians on February 20 when they attacked a truck traveling between villages in the Tillaberi region.

According to Niger Interior Minister Alkassoum Indatou, the latest attack in the Tillaberi region, near the border with Mali was conducted by a group of armed men on several motorcycles, who have not yet been identified.

The ministry said in a statement that after conducting the attack, armed bandits set the truck on fire, and the security forces are searching the attackers.

Thirteen of the victims were from Foney Ganda village and five from Tizegorou village, Indatou said in a statement.

“The provisional toll of the attack is 18 people killed, eight injured” while five of the injured civilians have been admitted to hospital in serious condition, the Niger interior ministry said in a statement.

Since last year, Niger officials have held ISIS militants responsible for a series of civilian killings in West Africa. The Islamic State and Al-Qaeda affiliated groups have been involved in several attacks in Sahel countries including Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger.

Despite continuous efforts of international forces in the Sahel region, western Niger has faced several attacks for years, including one of the deadly attacks on November 2, 2021, that resulted in the massacre of 69 self-defense militias.

*^{Tillaberi region of Niger, bordering Mali and Burkina Faso. (Image Credit: Aljazeera)}*

Last week on February 16, five Nigerien soldiers were killed in an improvised explosive attack in the Gotheye district of Tillaberi, in the southwest of the country, according to the defense ministry statement.

According to United Nations’ Human Development Index, Niger is the poorest country in the world and faces radical insurgencies.

Brutal jihadist insurgencies first emerged in Mali in 2012, and later spread to neighboring Niger and Burkina Faso, where local security forces continue to struggle against militant groups.