Niger: dozens of villagers killed in two jihadist attacks
Nigerien soldiers stand guard in Nimey (illustrative image).
Ludovic MARIN / POOL / AFP
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2 min
Jihadists attacked the Nigerien villages of Tchombangou and Zaroumdareye on Saturday, January 2, not far from the Malian border.
Several dozen villagers were killed.
Special forces from Operation Almahaou are dispatched to the area.
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With our correspondent in Niamey,
Moussa Kaka
These are two villages of the commune of Mangueize in the prefecture of Ouallam which were the targets of the jihadists: Tchombangou and Zaroumdareye.
It all started with the incursion of two jihadists on motorbikes in the village of Tchombangou.
Young people from the village organized in self-defense neutralized them and then finished off with a machete.
Reprisals were quickly organized by several jihadists who came on motorcycles.
The latest report shows at least 70 villagers killed and around 20 injured.
Regional authorities and well-informed security sources confirm the massacres in the two villages targeted by the jihadists.
These two villages are in the same area as the town of Tongo Tongo where three years ago,
American and Nigerien special forces
soldiers
were killed by jihadists.
With these attacks in these defenseless villages, the risks of inter-community conflicts are not excluded.
According to Interior Minister Alkach Alhada, the government will work to prevent this from spreading.
A delicate mission of the High Authority for the consolidation of peace which multiplies development actions in these conflict zones.
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