An attack late on Wednesday near the border of Burkina Faso killed ten soldiers and wounded another seven. On Tuesday, claims flooded social media about another brutal assault in the village of Chatoumane, located in the same western region. However, the ruling junta dismissed those reports as “unfounded claims.”
The army said Petel Kole detail was the target of a terrorist attack yesterday afternoon. A horde of hundreds of criminals on motorcycles tried to take control of the position.
It said at least 26 attackers had been “neutralised”.
Social media posts on the alleged Chatoumane attack said 91 soldiers and around 40 civilians had been killed. This information has not been verified.
Niger’s joint chiefs of staff denied the claim, telling state TV: “It is clear this is a brainwashing campaign by adversaries of the Nigerien people to sap our troops’ morale and sow divisions.”
Niger has been ruled since July 2023 by a military junta that took power in a coup that ousted elected president Mohamed Bazoum.
Like fellow Sahel neighbours Burkina Faso and Mali, it has been hit by years of violence by terror groups linked to Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group.
At least 1,500 civilians and troops have been killed in terrorist attacks in Niger in the past year, according to conflict monitoring group ACLED — more than double the 650 killed from July 2022 to July 2023.
Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso left the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas).
In April, Russian military trainers came to Niger with an air defence system and other equipment as part of the West African nation’s deepening security ties with Moscow.
The junta-led countries had already been suspended from the bloc, which has been urging them to return to democratic rule.
