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At least 69 people have been killed in militant attacks in two villages in the African country of Niger.
At least 49 people died and 18 others were injured in the village of Chombangu. Another 30 people were killed in the attack on Jaromdar village.
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The two villages are located near the border with Mali in western Niger, the BBC reports. Recently there have been several attacks by deadly militants in the Sahel region of Africa.
The last attack on the two villages took place during the national elections in Niger. The country’s president, Mahamadou Isoufu, has resigned after a five-year term in two terms.
France said on Saturday that two of its soldiers stationed in Mali had also died. Hours earlier, a group linked to al Qaeda said it was involved in the deaths of three French soldiers in separate attacks in Mali on Monday.
France has formed an alliance with allies in West Africa and Europe against hardline Islamists in West Africa.
However, countries like Niger and Mali continue to be victims of ethnic violence, human trafficking, drug trafficking and robberies.
Niger’s Interior Minister Alkache Alhada said troops had been sent to protect the area. The affected villages are in the Tilaberi region of the country, where a state of emergency has been established since 2016. And attacks by jihadist groups have become commonplace across Niger.
Last month, the Nigerian jihadist group Boko Haram carried out attacks in the southeastern region of Defafa, killing at least 26 people.
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