Twelve farmers killed by gunmen in Niger

A total of twelve farmers were killed on Thursday in their fields, during a double attack by gunmen in two villages in Nigeras AFP sources in the local government and security forces said on Friday.

“We had 12 deaths in the attack that took place on Thursday at noon, around 14:00 (16:00 Greek time) by gunmen”, said an official in the municipality of Anzourou. All the victims were men, he added.

The attacks took place in the remote villages of Duku Sarau and Duku Makani, which are about one kilometer apart.

A source in the security forces was limited to “confirming” that attacks were carried out, without giving an account.

The vast and unstable region of Tilaberi, on the so-called “international borders” of Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso, it is frequently attacked by jihadist organizations that pledge allegiance to al-Qaeda or the Islamic State.

These organizations continue their attacks despite the deployment of strong forces and the imposition of a state of emergency.

In the fight against the jihadists Niger is supported by the armies of France, the US, Italy, Germany and Belgium.

Villages in the Anzuru municipality had already suffered attacks from May 2020 to August 2021, when dozens of people were massacred inside their homes, in their fields, and even inside Islamic mosques by gunmen on motorcycles.

In 2022, a food crisis hit the region, due to the lack of rains on the one hand and jihadist attacks on the other. Farmers who dared to go to the fields for the harvest were murdered.

In 2021, the authorities were forced to resettle 12,000 villagers who fled their communities after a series of attacks and ultimatums by jihadist organizations to the regional capital of the same name, Tilaberi.