Algiers, Algeria | AFP | Algeria’s interior ministry on Friday defended moves to expel dozens of migrants as a matter of “national security”, after the UN voiced concern over a group who went missing in the desert. The global body’s refugee agency UNHCR said Thursday that 100 people were “unaccounted …
Read More »Niger army kills at least 280 Boko Haram militants: ministry
Niamey, Niger | AFP | Niger’s army killed more than 280 Boko Haram militants near the southeast border with Nigeria in days of land and air raids, the defence ministry said Wednesday. More than 200 jihadists were killed in air strikes and a further 87 by ground troops since the …
Read More »10 troops killed in Niger border clash with ‘bandits’
Niamey, Niger | AFP | Ten troops have been killed on Niger’s border with Nigeria in a joint operation by the two countries against “bandits”, Nigerien Defence Minister Kalla Moutari said on Monday. “Five Nigerien and five Nigerian” troops and 11 enemy fighters were killed in the operation, launched against …
Read More »15 suspected jihadists killed in joint French-Niger op
Paris, France | AFP | Some 15 suspected jihadists have been killed near the Niger-Mali border by a joint franco-nigerien task force, the French military high command said. “On the night of December 27 (…) an air raid mounted by fighters and Tiger attack helicopters struck” jihadists gathered near Tongo …
Read More »Around 100 Niger schools close, suspend classes over militant threat: UN
Niamey, Niger | AFP | Around 100 schools have closed or suspended classes in Niger due to the threat from Islamist militants, the UN said on Thursday, in the latest warning over jihadist presence. Western African leaders last month held regional talks on the escalating attacks by Boko Haram jihadists …
Read More »Niger reports sharp drop in new AIDS infections
Niamey, Niger | AFP | The number of new AIDS infections in Niger dropped by more than two thirds between 2012 and 2016, the health ministry said Saturday, in a statement marking World AIDS day. Health Minister Idi Illiassou said new infections in the four-year period under review fell from …
Read More »Niger to move protected giraffes as habitat shrinks
Niamey, Niger | AFP | Part of a group of a rare giraffes that has become a Niger tourist attraction is to be moved to a reserve 600 kilometres (400 miles) away owing to encroaching desert, farmland and increasing instances of them being struck by vehicles, officials said Wednesday. “It’s …
Read More »US army punishes six over roles in fatal Niger ambush: report
Washington, United States | AFP | The US Army has punished six members of the armed forces for their roles in a 2017 mission in Niger that resulted in the ambush deaths of four Americans and four allied Nigerien troops, The New York Times reported Saturday. The ambush occurred on …
Read More »Niger launches mass polio vaccination drive
Niamey, Niger | AFP | Niger has launched a mass polio vaccination campaign targeting more than three million children under five after new cases were detected, an official said Friday. The programme kicked off Thursday in the regions of Zinder, Maradi, Agadez and Diffa, said Rabi Souley, who is in …
Read More »Miya will be available for Niger tourney – Desabre
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Uganda Cranes midfielder Farouk Miya will be available when the national team takes part in a three nations tournament in Niger May 30 to June 2. Head coach Sebastien Desabre told URN in an interview at the Serena Hotel, Kampala on Tuesday night that they …
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