Niger: Terrorist attack in Ngalewa (Diffa region) July 2

Event

At least nine people were killed and 37 kidnapped in a terrorist attack carried out on Sunday night, July 2, in Ngalewa, a village located in the Diffa region of southern Niger close to the Nigerian border. According to local sources, Boko Haram is behind the attack. The perpetrators reportedly demanded the release of fellow militants detained in Niger in exchange for the release of the 37 people abducted. 

Context

Niger faces a high threat of terrorism, including attacks and abductions. Islamist militant 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 active in the country. The Diffa region has seen repeated attacks by Boko Haram and its affiliates, resulting in hundreds of civilian deaths and military casualties and thousands of displaced people. This is the second attack in the Diffa region in the past week. On June 28, five civilians were killed in an attack carried out in a refugee camp in Kabaléwa (Diffa region). 

Advice

Visitors throughout the country should be on guard 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.