NIAMEY: Around 25 people were killed on Wednesday in a Boko Haram attack on a village in southern Niger and subsequent clashes between the Islamist militants and the army, Niger military officials said.
Fighters from the Nigerian militant group killed five civilians in their initial attack on the village located in the West African nation's Bosso district. Niger soldiers drove back the militants, killing around 20 of them, the officers said.
"Reactingly quickly, the government's forces were able to push them back. Most of the Boko Haram elements have been neutralised," said one of the officers, based in the Diffa border region.
"The situation is under control and we are carrying out clean-up operations," he added.
Boko Haram has ramped up cross-border attacks into Niger, Chad and Cameroon from its strongholds in northeastern Nigeria in recent months.
Almost a third of Diffa's nearly 600,000 inhabitants have been displaced by the violence.
A long-awaited 8,700-troop-strong regional task force is set to begin joint operations soon against the Islamist fighters when the region's rainy season ends, a top United Nations official said late last month.
Fighters from the Nigerian militant group killed five civilians in their initial attack on the village located in the West African nation's Bosso district. Niger soldiers drove back the militants, killing around 20 of them, the officers said.
"Reactingly quickly, the government's forces were able to push them back. Most of the Boko Haram elements have been neutralised," said one of the officers, based in the Diffa border region.
Boko Haram has ramped up cross-border attacks into Niger, Chad and Cameroon from its strongholds in northeastern Nigeria in recent months.
Advertisement
A long-awaited 8,700-troop-strong regional task force is set to begin joint operations soon against the Islamist fighters when the region's rainy season ends, a top United Nations official said late last month.
© Thomson Reuters 2015
Advertisement
COMMENTS
Advertisement
18 Killed, 42 Injured In Series Of Suicide Attacks In Nigeria Cameroon Man Hides Cocaine Worth ₹ 11 Crore In Stomach, Arrested In Delhi General Mahamat Idriss Deby Wins Chad's Presidential Election Windows Computers Lead To 'Blue Screen Of Death' Due To CrowdStrike Error Massive Worldwide Microsoft Outage: Flights, Markets, Stock Exchange Down Microsoft 'Blue Screen Of Death' Outage: Full List Of Services Hit In India India's Electricity Demand May Surge By 8% This Year: Report PM Modi Hails Lockheed Martin's Make In India, Make For World Drive Study Abroad: Top 10 Management Universities In United Kingdom Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.