NIAMEY, Niger: Ten people were killed along with two suicide bombers in a coordinated attack late Tuesday by Boko Haram extremists on a town in eastern Niger, the local mayor said.
“Two female suicide bombers blew themselves up and gunmen then attacked civilians,” the mayor of the town of N’Guigmi, Abba Kaya Issa, told AFP on Wednesday.
“We have a provisional toll of 10 dead plus the two suicide bombers,” along with “seven or eight” wounded, he said, blaming “Boko Haram elements” for the assault.
“One of the suicide bombers blew herself up in the courtyard of a policeman’s home, which is located inside the police barracks, and the second triggered her explosives belt between the town hall, the police barracks and the prefecture,” he said, referring to the office of the state representative.
A local resident said several houses had been burned and wounded children in the police camp had been taken to the local hospital.
Another inhabitant said “armed Boko Haram” attacked the district of Dileram, “killing civilians and torching homes.”
N’Guigmi lies in the north of the Diffa region, near Lake Chad, which has borne the brunt of cross-border infiltration by the Nigerian-based extremists.
Eight people were killed last Thursday in the village of Karidi and 14 died in four attacks on Saturday. Fourteen soldiers have been killed since February 16.
The army says it killed “more than 200 terrorists” in the region at the end of last year, as well as 33 others on March 12.
An estimated 27,000 people have been killed and two million displaced since Boko Haram launched its insurgency in northeastern Nigeria 2009, a campaign that has spilled over to Burkina Faso, Niger and Chad.
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Boko Haram attacks in eastern Niger leave 10 dead: mayor
Boko Haram attacks in eastern Niger leave 10 dead: mayor
- A resident said the explosion burned houses nearby and injured children
- Since the appearance of Boko Haram, they have killed 27,000 people
Ghana foreign minister: 55 nationals killed fighting in Ukraine
- Among hundreds of Africans said to have been lured to fight there for Russia
- More than 1,780 citizens from 36 African countries had been identified among Russia’s ranks
ACCRA: Ghana’s foreign minister said Friday that 55 Ghanaians had been killed while fighting in Ukraine, among hundreds of Africans said to have been lured to fight there for Russia.
“We were informed that 272 Ghanaians are believed to have been lured into battle since 2022 for which an estimated 55 have been killed and 2 captured as prisoners of war,” minister Sam Okudzeto Ablakwa said on X.
He called the news “depressing and frightening,” speaking after meeting with his Ukrainian counterpart in Kyiv.
“We cannot turn a blind eye to these heartbreaking statistics. These are not just numbers, they represent human lives, the hope of many Ghanaian families and our nation,” Ablakwa wrote.
Ukraine said on Wednesday that more than 1,780 citizens from 36 African countries had been identified among Russia’s ranks.
Ablakwa said the government was “committed to tracking and dismantling all dark web illegal recruitment schemes operating within our jurisdiction.”
AFP reporters in Ukraine in late 2025 met prisoners of war from Kenya, Togo, Cameroon and Nigeria.
AFP recently spoke with four Kenyans — three wounded — who made it home. They had been promised lucrative civilian jobs in Russia but were forced to sign contracts with the army and sent to the frontlines in Ukraine with limited training.
A key figure in a network that sent more than 1,000 Kenyans to fight for the Russian army was charged on Thursday with human trafficking, the state prosecutor said.
In South Africa 15 men who were reportedly tricked into joining mercenary forces were repatriated this week. Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola said several remain in Russia and at least two have died fighting in Ukraine.
“We were informed that 272 Ghanaians are believed to have been lured into battle since 2022 for which an estimated 55 have been killed and 2 captured as prisoners of war,” minister Sam Okudzeto Ablakwa said on X.
He called the news “depressing and frightening,” speaking after meeting with his Ukrainian counterpart in Kyiv.
“We cannot turn a blind eye to these heartbreaking statistics. These are not just numbers, they represent human lives, the hope of many Ghanaian families and our nation,” Ablakwa wrote.
Ukraine said on Wednesday that more than 1,780 citizens from 36 African countries had been identified among Russia’s ranks.
Ablakwa said the government was “committed to tracking and dismantling all dark web illegal recruitment schemes operating within our jurisdiction.”
AFP reporters in Ukraine in late 2025 met prisoners of war from Kenya, Togo, Cameroon and Nigeria.
AFP recently spoke with four Kenyans — three wounded — who made it home. They had been promised lucrative civilian jobs in Russia but were forced to sign contracts with the army and sent to the frontlines in Ukraine with limited training.
A key figure in a network that sent more than 1,000 Kenyans to fight for the Russian army was charged on Thursday with human trafficking, the state prosecutor said.
In South Africa 15 men who were reportedly tricked into joining mercenary forces were repatriated this week. Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola said several remain in Russia and at least two have died fighting in Ukraine.
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