(Reuters) -At least 30 people were killed in an airstrike in western Niger, two sources told Reuters, the latest casualties in a part of the country hit hard by Islamist militant attacks and counterinsurgency operations.
The strike took place on Monday near a weekly market in the town of Injar in the Tillabery region that borders Burkina Faso and Mali, the sources said. The area is a hub of activity by groups linked to Islamic State and al-Qaeda that all three military-run governments have struggled to combat.
A witness and resident of the area said the death toll was 37, while a security source said it was “more than 30.”
The witness spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals. The security source spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to brief the media.
“The bomb fell on the outskirts of the market. It was the fragments that made impacts, hitting people who were close by,” said a medical source who was involved in treating some of the wounded at a local health facility.
The government has not issued a statement about the incident. A government spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment on Friday.
The security source said local authorities had tried to close the weekly market on the suspicion that militant groups were getting supplies there, but residents ignored the order.
Air and ground operations by security forces have increased since military officers led by General Abdourahamane Tiani toppled President Mohamed Bazoum in a coup in 2023, according to Armed Conflict Location & Event Data, a U.S. crisis-monitoring group.
Islamic State-affiliated militants have stepped up attacks in western Niger this year, killing more than 127 people in five separate strikes since March, highlighting the failure of authorities to protect civilians, Human Rights Watch said in a report earlier this month.
Military killings of civilians in Niger are much less common than in neighbouring Mali and Burkina Faso, according to ACLED.
(Reporting by Niger newsroom and Portia Crowe; Writing by Ayen Deng Bior; Editing by Robbie Corey-Boulet and Bill Berkrot)
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