The Niger army announced today, Saturday, that it had killed three attackers during an attack by “heavily armed” men on its positions near a gold mine, in a desert area in Arlit (north).
A statement from the Niger Army Staff stated that the military site, which was attacked “Friday at around 17:00 GMT by a heavily armed enemy” who was traveling in eight vehicles, is located in “Chiparacaten”, where thousands of people work in manually digging for gold.
The statement added that the “strong reaction” of the Nigerien soldiers made it possible to “repel” the attackers, who “fled”, leaving three bodies in the place.
The army confirmed that it confiscated four vehicles, a 12.7 mm machine gun, several shells and various ammunition from the attackers, without specifying their identities.
The statement pointed out that an army vehicle was damaged during the battles.
In mid-April, five Nigerien soldiers were killed by “armed men” as they escorted a convoy of gold miners that had just left the Cheparacaten site.
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