An ambush by a “terrorist group” killed 21 Nigerien soldiers near the country’s border with Burkina Faso on Tuesday evening, Niger’s ruling military junta said in a statement read on national television.
The attack took place close to the village of Tassia in Tillaberi region, according to the ministry’s statement on state television.
It blamed the attack on a coalition of armed groups, adding that a further nine people were wounded and two vehicles damaged.
The statement said the soldiers had killed dozens of militants while defending themselves from the attack and search operations were ongoing for the rest of the perpetrators.
Peoplesmind