At least 36 Nigerien soldiers have been killed in a large-scale attack by jihadist fighters linked to Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal Muslimin (JNIM) on Makalondi, a border town between Niger and Burkina Faso, security sources have confirmed.

Zagazola report that the attack occurred on Feb. 4 at about 6:30 p.m. in the Tillabéri region of Niger. Preliminary reports indicate that the assailants overran a military position, killing at least 36 soldiers and injuring several others, some critically.

According to sources, the attackers seized at least 12 military vehicles mounted with heavy machine guns, along with weapons, ammunition and personal effects. One of the vehicles was later found destroyed a few kilometres from the scene.

In response to the scale of the attack, Niger’s Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Salifou Mody Barmou, visited Makalondi on Feb. 5 for an on-the-spot assessment, underscoring the gravity of the human and material losses.

In a related incident, suspected Islamic State Sahel/ISWAP terrorists on Feb. 6 at about 2:00 a.m. attacked a Customs post in Kouré town, Dosso Region, about 60 kilometres south of Niamey. Casualties included one Customs lieutenant and one Forest Service sergeant declared missing, while two Customs informants were killed.

Security sources said one Customs vehicle was burnt, another taken away, and several motorcycles destroyed during the attack.

Meanwhile, in neighbouring Mali, JNIM fighters also launched coordinated assaults on Dozo militia positions in Nayo (Ségou Region) and Bandiagara (Mopti Region) between Jan. 29 and Feb. 3, resulting in heavy casualties among the pro-government militias.

Reports indicated that the Dozo groups had earlier raised alarms that they were surrounded by terrorists and had requested intervention from the Malian Armed Forces (FAMa), but no timely response was provided.

JNIM has intensified operations across central Mali, blockading key supply routes to Bamako and laying siege to villages linked to Dozo groups, in what appears to be a strategy to weaken state authority and force political concessions.

The Alliance of Sahel States (AES) comprising Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso has since announced renewed efforts to combat terrorism through a joint military force, as international partners continue to express concern over the deteriorating security situation in the Sahel. (Zagazola)

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