The day after the attack which killed eight people, including six French, in Niger, the spokesperson for the National Rally spoke. Sébastien Chenu judged this Monday "inopportune" to "go for a walk in Niger at the moment", including for humanitarian workers. A version contradicted by NGOs on the spot.
After expressing his “compassion” on Europe 1, he nevertheless considered that “it would seem very inappropriate to go for a walk in Niger at the moment”. "As long as the situation is not restored and more solid in terms of security, it is very difficult to send some of our people there, including on humanitarian missions," he said. Should we bring in those who are in the region? "When they are in areas where their life is in danger, it seems obvious, so as not to end up in a situation of this type," he replied.
Tourist attraction
On Sunday, eight people, two Nigeriens and six French including employees of the NGO Acted, were killed by armed men who arrived on motorcycles in the Kouré area (southwest of the country) during a tourist excursion. Paris confirmed that the French had perished, without giving the number.
This is the first attack to target Westerners in this area since it became a tourist attraction some 20 years ago, thanks to a herd of Peralta giraffes, a species that has disappeared from the rest of the country. planet, which had found a haven of peace there.
"Everyone is going"
“Kouré is 60 km from Niamey, an hour's drive away. We all go to Kouré on weekends because it's very easy to get to (…). Everyone goes, even the ambassadors, diplomats, professors, everyone! It is not at all considered dangerous as an area. There are giraffe protection NGOs working there, ”a Western humanitarian in Niamey told AFP. The area is classified orange (not recommended unless there is an imperative reason) and not red (formally discouraged) by French diplomacy. It is in another region, that of Tillabéri, north-west of Niamey, in the area known as the “three borders” between Niger, Burkina Faso and Mali, that jihadist violence is most frequent.
Several politicians, including Eric Ciotti (LR), Valérie Pécresse (Libres!) Or Adrien Quatennens (LFI), expressed on Twitter their emotion and their "solidarity" with the families of the victims after this attack.
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