NIAMEY, May 9 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Seven soldiers were killedafter their vehicle ran over a landmine in the Niger’s western Tillaberi region, said the National Guard of Niger (GNN).
Insurgents regularly launch attacks in the region.
A vehicle carrying supplies on a weekly delivery run hit the mine late in the morning six kilometres from Samira village, said the GNN in a statement.
The village, which lies not far from Niger’s border with Burkina Faso in the southwest, has since 2004 hosted the country’s only industrial-scale gold mine.
This assault was just the latest in a series of attacks against Niger’s soldiers.
The impoverished Sahel country is grappling with an insurgency linked to Al-Qaeda and the Daesh group. In the southwest, they also have to contend with fighters from Boko Haram.
Niger is supported by a number of western countries, including France and the United States, who both have military bases there. — NNN-AGENCIES
