Niger: Boko Haram attacks claim fewer victims in 2017 than 2016

Event

Boko Haram attacks in Niger claimed fewer victims in 2017 compared to 2016 and 2015. According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), a total of 141 Nigerien civilians were killed, kidnapped, or wounded by Boko Haram attacks in 2017, compared to a total of 227 victims as a result of such attacks in 2016 and 214 victims in 2015. The areas most affected by Boko Haram violence in 2017 were Gueskerou and Kabalewa districts (Diffa region), which recorded the most attacks and the highest number of casualties of all areas of Niger, respectively.

Context

Niger generally faces a high threat from terrorism, including armed attacks and abductions. Militant Islamist cells from various Nigerian and Malian terrorist groups - including Boko Haram, Al-Qa'ida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), the Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa (MUJAO), and Al-Mourabitoun - are all active in the country.

Advice

Visitors throughout Niger should exercise vigilance when visiting sites deemed particularly likely to be targeted by an attack (government buildings, prominent hotels, etc.) and report any suspicious objects or behavior to the authorities. Many Western governments advise their citizens against all travel to areas located in the north and west of the country, as well as areas along the Nigerian border to the south, due to the high risk of terrorist activity.