BREAKING

17 Nigerien soldiers dead in militant ambush near Burkina Faso

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
16 Aug 2023 23:50

Insurgents ambush Nigerien militants killing 17 and injuring 20, while the Nigerien Army announces that about 100 militants were neutralized.

Niger soldiers ride in a military vehicle on May 25, 2015, in Malam Fatori, in northern Nigeria, near the border with Niger (AFP)

In Niger, at least 17 soldiers were killed in an ambush by an insurgent ambush, according to the government.

A statement by the Nigerien Defense Ministry confirmed that an army detachment was "the victim of a terrorist ambush near the town of Koutougou" in the Tillaberi region near the border with Burkina Faso, where the two countries struggle to contain terrorist organizations and their militants from carrying out attacks against civilians and troops.

The ambush also wounded 20 other soldiers, among which six were considered severely injured. While all injured troops involved in the ambush were evacuated to Niamey, the Nigerien army successfully neutralized over 100 militants riding motorbikes.

ECOWAS military chiefs to discuss Niger crisis on Thursday, Friday

Military chiefs from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) will meet in Ghana on Thursday and Friday to discuss a possible military invasion in Niger, regional military and political sources confirmed on Tuesday.

The meeting, originally scheduled for Saturday but then postponed, came after ECOWAS leaders last week approved the deployment of a "standby force to restore constitutional order" in Niger and reinstate Western-backed ousted president Mohamed Bazoum who was toppled on July 26 in a coup staged by military leaders.

On July 30, ECOWAS gave Niger's military rulers a one-week ultimatum on July 30 to restore Bazoum or face the potential use of force, but the deadline expired without action.

However, Niger was subjected to sanctions by the West African body and a near-total air and land embargo on shared borders, which hindered the nation's access to medicines, food, and electricity.

At the weekend, the coup leaders said they were open to a diplomatic push after their chief, General Abdourahamane Tchiani, met with Nigerian religious mediators.

Those talks came after the ECOWAS military meeting in Ghana was postponed for "technical reasons".

But on Sunday night, Niger's rulers declared they had gathered sufficient evidence to prosecute Bazoum for "high treason and undermining internal and external security."