ISIS Sahel affiliate claims two attacks in Niger that killed over 50 security personnel
More than 50 gendarmes and soldiers were reported killed in two separate attacks in western Niger within a week. Islamic State's regional branch, Islamic State Sahel Province, claimed responsibility for both.
RastinewsMore than 50 security personnel have been killed in two attacks in western Niger, according to reports.
Two security sources said a gendarmerie convoy was ambushed near the town of Abala-Filingué last Wednesday. In a separate attack on Saturday in Birni N'Konni, more than 30 soldiers were killed.
The casualty figures come from security sources who were not named. It remains unclear whether Niger's government has confirmed the numbers.
Islamic State Sahel Province issued two separate statements
The sources said only that the attacks were carried out by "terrorists," without providing further detail.
According to SITE Intelligence Group, Islamic State Sahel Province, the group's West Africa affiliate, claimed responsibility for the attacks in two separate statements issued on Sunday.
Analysts and security sources point to growing unrest among frontline units, particularly in the west of the country, after a string of losses to jihadist groups.
According to Reuters, mutinous soldiers in Niger attacked the airport and the presidential palace last month amid tensions with the government, during which the Kremlin-controlled paramilitary group Africa Corps backed government forces.
In June, an attack claimed by the al-Qaeda-linked group JNIM on Diori Hamani International Airport in the capital, Niamey, killed 11 soldiers and 2 civilians.
Niger, currently under military rule, is fighting a years-long insurgency by al-Qaeda- and ISIS-linked groups, as are its neighbors Mali and Burkina Faso.