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Associated Press

Six French citizens, two guides killed by gunmen at Niger wildlife park

August 10, 2020
Niamey, Niger: Niger River from the left bank - view upstream towards Neini Goungou, the third-longest river in Africa, rises between Sierra Leone and Guinea at an altitude of 800 m at the foot of the Loma Mountains. Its course crosses or borders five states (Guinea, Mali, Niger, Benin and Nigeria) - called Djoliba in Mandingo

Unidentified gunmen killed six French citizens and two Nigerien guides who were visiting a wildlife park east of Niger’s capital overnight, the West African nation’s interior ministry said.

French President Emmanuel Macron's office confirmed that some French citizens were killed during the attack but would not elaborate. Macron had a phone call with Niger President Mahamadou Issoufou today, his office said.

The attack took place in Koure, where Niger has a giraffe reserve, Oumarou Moussa, the adviser to Niger's interior minister, told The Associated Press. The area is a protected national park that contains dense vegetation and tall trees about 70 kilometers southeast of the capital. Hundreds of people visit each year to see its distinctive giraffes.

The park is in the Tillaberi region, where jihadists linked to ISIS killed four US soldiers and five Nigeriens in 2017.

The French government has warned citizens against travelling outside of the capital of Niamey as militants linked to Boko Haram, ISIS and al-Qaida still carry out attacks across the vast West African nation. Niger borders several countries including Mali, Burkina Faso, Chad, Nigeria and Libya.

Violence by groups linked to ISIS and al-Qaida is on the rise in the Sahel region. France has deployed thousands of soldiers to help fight the growing insurgency there, and a local Sahel force made up of soldiers from Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, Chad and Mauritania has also been fighting the extremists.

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