Eleven soldiers were killed and nine are reported "
missing
" during a jihadist attack on an army position in Dagnè, in western Niger, an area bereaved earlier this week by the death of 69 civilians in a ambush, according to the government this Friday, November 5.
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The attack by "
a column of heavily armed terrorists aboard several vehicles and dozens of motorcycles
" killed eleven soldiers, and left one injured, according to a statement from the Ministry of Defense read on public television.
"
After fierce fighting, the enemy column was forced to retreat, carrying its dead and wounded,
" adds the text, which specifies that "
air and land reinforcements dispatched to the area continue to sweep the area
".
Death of 69 villagers
The targeted soldiers had been deployed to ensure the safety of the thousands of villagers who had returned to their communities after the massacres of dozens of civilians by suspected jihadists.
The Nigerien government had declared a national mourning of 48 hours from Friday after the death of 69 villagers members of self-defense militias in an attack near the border of Mali, in the region of Tillabéri (west).
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This region located in the three borders area, on the borders of Burkina Faso and Mali, has been the scene since the beginning of the year of many deadly jihadist actions. According to a former mayor of the region, villagers had recently formed self-defense committees to watch over peasants regularly targeted by armed men in their fields.
In the region of Tahoua, near that of Tillabéri, 141 people were killed in March by suspected jihadists, in several hamlets and camps.
Tillabéri, a huge and unstable region of 100,000 km2, is located in the area of the three borders between Niger, Burkina Faso and Mali, the scene since 2017 of murderous actions by armed groups linked to Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State (IS) group.
During a visit to the region in September, Nigerien President Mohamed Bazoum estimated that "
the enemy is falling back on unarmed innocent populations
" and "is
engaged in a massacre on a large scale
".