Latest news with #EIGS
Reuters
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
About 10 Niger soldiers killed in attack in the south, authorities say
NIAMEY, May 7 (Reuters) - About 10 soldiers were killed and seven injured in an attack in Niger's Dosso region this week, authorities said in a statement broadcast on state radio, while a security source told Reuters the death toll could be higher. The statement attributed Monday's ambush in southern Niger to "terrorists" and said several of the assailants had been killed and others arrested. The Reuters Tariff Watch newsletter is your daily guide to the latest global trade and tariff news. Sign up here. Alongside its Sahel neighbours Mali and Burkina Faso, Niger is battling an insurgency by jihadist groups linked to Al Qaeda and the Islamic State. The security source said 18 soldiers were missing. Three security vehicles were also stolen, the source said. The government ordered a ban on the use of motorcycles in the affected communities, according to a directive seen by Reuters. Last month, 12 soldiers were killed and five Indian citizens kidnapped in an attack in Niger near the turbulent tri-border region with Mali and Burkina Faso. In March, authorities blamed the EIGS group, an Islamic State affiliate, for an attack on a mosque near the tri-border area in which at least 44 civilians were killed. The governor of southern Niger's Dosso region, Colonel Major Bana Alassane, travelled to the area a day after the attack to offer condolences to the soldiers' families, the government statement said.
AsiaOne
01-05-2025
- AsiaOne
5 Indians kidnapped in attack in Niger, World News
NIAMEY — Five Indian citizens were kidnapped in western Niger during an attack last week by armed men that also killed a dozen soldiers, according to two Nigerian security sources and a statement by Indian state authorities seen by Reuters on Wednesday (April 30). Reuters reported on Saturday that 12 soldiers had been killed in the attack a day earlier near the village of Sakoira in the tri-border region, where the West African Sahel countries of Niger, Burkina Faso and Mali meet. The victims were working for an Indian company providing services to Niger's Kandadji dam project, the two security sources said. The local government of the Indian state of Jharkhand said in a statement that the five citizens had been working in the Tillaberi region. It said all five were from Jharkhand and that the Indian embassy in Niger had approached Nigerian authorities for support in securing their release. The armed men who carried out the kidnapping have not been officially identified, but last month Niger blamed the EIGS group, an Islamic State affiliate, for an attack on a mosque near the tri-border area in which at least 44 civilians were killed. Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso are fighting a jihadist insurgency linked to al Qaeda and Islamic State that spun out of a Tuareg rebellion in northern Mali in 2012 and later spread to its neighbouring countries. Kidnappings appear to have intensified this year, with an Austrian woman kidnapped in January and a Swiss citizen earlier in April, both in Niger. Also in January, four Moroccan truck drivers went missing on the border between Niger and Burkina Faso. ALSO READ: More than 100 kidnapped Nigerian students arrive back in Kaduna
The Star
30-04-2025
- Politics
- The Star
Five Indians kidnapped in attack in Niger
NIAMEY (Reuters) - Five Indian citizens were kidnapped in western Niger during an attack last week by armed men that also killed a dozen soldiers, according to two Nigerian security sources and a statement by Indian state authorities seen by Reuters on Wednesday. Reuters reported on Saturday that 12 soldiers had been killed in the attack a day earlier near the village of Sakoira in the tri-border region, where the West African Sahel countries of Niger, Burkina Faso and Mali meet. The victims were working for an Indian company providing services to Niger's Kandadji dam project, the two security sources said. The local government of the Indian state of Jharkhand said in a statement that the five citizens had been working in the Tillaberi region. It said all five were from Jharkhand and that the Indian embassy in Niger had approached Nigerian authorities for support in securing their release. The armed men who carried out the kidnapping have not been officially identified, but last month Niger blamed the EIGS group, an Islamic State affiliate, for an attack on a mosque near the tri-border area in which at least 44 civilians were killed. Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso are fighting a jihadist insurgency linked to al Qaeda and Islamic State that spun out of a Tuareg rebellion in northern Mali in 2012 and later spread to its neighbouring countries. Kidnappings appear to have intensified this year, with an Austrian woman kidnapped in January and a Swiss citizen earlier in April, both in Niger. Also in January, four Moroccan truck drivers went missing on the border between Niger and Burkina Faso. (Reporting by Moussa Aksar in Niamey; additional reporting by Jatindra Dash in Bhubaneswar; writing by Portia Crowe; editing by Barbara Lewis)
Straits Times
30-04-2025
- Straits Times
Five Indians kidnapped in attack in Niger
NIAMEY - Five Indian citizens were kidnapped in western Niger during an attack last week by armed men that also killed a dozen soldiers, according to two Nigerian security sources and a statement by Indian state authorities seen by Reuters on Wednesday. Reuters reported on Saturday that 12 soldiers had been killed in the attack a day earlier near the village of Sakoira in the tri-border region, where the West African Sahel countries of Niger, Burkina Faso and Mali meet. The victims were working for an Indian company providing services to Niger's Kandadji dam project, the two security sources said. The local government of the Indian state of Jharkhand said in a statement that the five citizens had been working in the Tillaberi region. It said all five were from Jharkhand and that the Indian embassy in Niger had approached Nigerian authorities for support in securing their release. The armed men who carried out the kidnapping have not been officially identified, but last month Niger blamed the EIGS group, an Islamic State affiliate, for an attack on a mosque near the tri-border area in which at least 44 civilians were killed. Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso are fighting a jihadist insurgency linked to al Qaeda and Islamic State that spun out of a Tuareg rebellion in northern Mali in 2012 and later spread to its neighbouring countries. Kidnappings appear to have intensified this year, with an Austrian woman kidnapped in January and a Swiss citizen earlier in April, both in Niger. Also in January, four Moroccan truck drivers went missing on the border between Niger and Burkina Faso. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Reuters
30-04-2025
- Reuters
Five Indians kidnapped in attack in Niger
NIAMEY, April 30 (Reuters) - Five Indian citizens were kidnapped in western Niger during an attack last week by armed men that also killed a dozen soldiers, according to two Nigerian security sources and a statement by Indian state authorities seen by Reuters on Wednesday. Reuters reported on Saturday that 12 soldiers had been killed in the attack a day earlier near the village of Sakoira in the tri-border region, where the West African Sahel countries of Niger, Burkina Faso and Mali meet. The victims were working for an Indian company providing services to Niger's Kandadji dam project, the two security sources said. The local government of the Indian state of Jharkhand said in a statement that the five citizens had been working in the Tillaberi region. It said all five were from Jharkhand and that the Indian embassy in Niger had approached Nigerian authorities for support in securing their release. The armed men who carried out the kidnapping have not been officially identified, but last month Niger blamed the EIGS group, an Islamic State affiliate, for an attack on a mosque near the tri-border area in which at least 44 civilians were killed. Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso are fighting a jihadist insurgency linked to al Qaeda and Islamic State that spun out of a Tuareg rebellion in northern Mali in 2012 and later spread to its neighbouring countries. Kidnappings appear to have intensified this year, with an Austrian woman kidnapped in January and a Swiss citizen earlier in April, both in Niger. Also in January, four Moroccan truck drivers went missing on the border between Niger and Burkina Faso.
