Boko Haram kills 7 in series of attacks in Niger Republic

At least seven villagers have been killed in a series of attacks by Boko Haram jihadists in southeastern Niger near the border with Nigeria.

According to reports by a local official and an NGO on Sunday, the attackers carried out three separate raids overnight Saturday.

A senior official in the Diffa region, which borders northeastern Nigeria, Boko Haram’s base confirmed that they killed seven people, abducted two women and burned down a market and several houses, in during the raids.

Meanwhile, Alternative Espace Citoyen, a group active in the region, posted a message on Facebook saying there had been four attacks in which 11 people had been killed.

READ ALSO: 1,300 people rescued after Norway cruise ship develops engine problems

Already last Thursday, a Boko Haram attack in Karidi, a village on the border with Nigeria, killed eight people including one woman, according to local officials.

On March 9, jihadists killed nine Niger soldiers in an attack in the same area. And another seven soldiers perished last month in a Boko Haram attack on their position near the border.

Earlier this month, the authorities in Niger said they had killed 33 Boko Haram fighters in an operation in the region.

Diffa, which borders northeastern Nigeria, has suffered a string of cross-border raids.

An estimated 27,000 people have been killed and two million displaced since Boko Haram launched its insurgency in 2009.

Lake Chad, which straddles parts of Niger, Nigeria and Chad, has borne the brunt of the jihadists’ hit-and-run attacks.

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now