Two civilians were killed and a wanted terrorist leader was neutralized on Sunday during an attack by armed men on a Niger National Guard position in Torodi, a town in western Niger near the Burkina Faso border.
The National Guard responded swiftly with reinforcements, forcing the attackers to retreat. However, an improvised explosive device detonated during the incident, killing two civilians.
Subsequent search operations led to the elimination of Loukoumane, a high-profile militant known for planting explosives and involved in several past attacks in the Torodi-Makalondi and Torodi-Kobagué areas.
The attack occurred in the Tillabéri region, which has faced persistent violence from armed groups since 2017 due to its proximity to the volatile tri-border zone shared with Burkina Faso and Mali.
Just days earlier, on June 19, at least 34 Nigerien soldiers were killed and 14 others wounded in a separate attack on a military base in Banibangou, also in Tillabéri.
The army reported neutralizing several dozen attackers in that assault, underscoring the continued security challenges in the region.
