According to the ministry, the attack took place in the department of Tera, near the border with Mali and Burkina Faso, where numerous Islamic fundamentalist groups launch frequent attacks against civilians and security forces.
The incident began around 10:00 on Tuesday (same time in Lisbon), when a military convoy patrolling the area was attacked by a group of heavily armed militants, which injured nine soldiers, in addition to the fatalities.
Two vehicles were damaged and "dozens of terrorists were neutralized", while "their means of transport [were] destroyed", said the ministry, which added that it had sent air and ground reinforcements to pursue the remaining attackers who managed to escape
The Government of Niger has declared three days of national mourning throughout the territory starting today, a measure that includes the lowering of flags at half-mast, reported the Actuniger news portal.
The attack came days after the Niger army announced the death of ten suspected terrorists, including an Islamic State leader, and the arrest of 31 others between Thursday and Saturday, also in the Tillabéri region.
Nine of the terrorists were killed during an air control mission carried out in the Nabolé sector, as part of the "Niya" military operation, which is leading the fight against terrorism on the right bank of the Niger River.
A motorized military patrol, made up of several vehicles, was in the Nabolé sector when it was ambushed on the night of Thursday, June 20, by terrorists who opened "heavy fire" on the soldiers.
During an incursion in the same area, on the night of June 21st to 22nd, the military killed Abdoulaye Souleymane Idouwal, who the army describes as an "influential member of the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara", in the village of Gnandawal.
Niger, governed by a coup military junta since July 2023, is home to fundamentalist groups loyal to Al-Qaida and the Islamic State, which carry out recurring attacks against security forces and the civilian population.
According to the non-governmental organization Armed Conflict Location And Event Data Project, which monitors violence around the world, between May 2023 and May 2024, 1,460 people were killed in Niger in violent events by non-state groups and 997 by state forces.
Niger is one of the poorest countries in Africa and ranks 189th (out of 195) on the United Nations Human Development Index, which estimates that 91% of its population is poor.
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