4th November, 2021
By Reuters via NAN
About 60 people have been killed in an attack on the village of Banibangou in southwest Niger, two local officials said.
Details of Tuesday’s raid on a remote area near the border with Mali were sparse and no group has claimed responsibility, said Zakari Karidjo, the deputy of the department of Banibangou.
He said that there was a clash between government and Jihadist forces and that there were losses on both sides.
The prefect of a neighbouring department confirmed the death toll.
The attack occurred in an area overrun by jihadists associated with a local affiliate of Islamic State that has killed hundreds of civilians in attacks on rural communities this year.
The borderlands of Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso have been racked by violence in recent years as armed groups, some linked with al Qaeda, have sought to establish control over communities.
They also hoped to rid the region of local and international military forces.