Unidentified gunmen executed 20 civilians near the Komabangou gold mining site in Niger’s Tillabéri region, local sources reported on Saturday.
The massacre took place last Thursday when the attackers intercepted a transport vehicle carrying residents returning from Mehanna market. The passengers were forced to disembark; nineteen men were shot dead after being ordered to lie on the ground, while the vehicle was set ablaze with the driver’s body inside.
Only four people survived, including two women. The perpetrators remain unidentified, though authorities suspect armed groups active along the borders with Burkina Faso and Mali.
The attack is the latest in a series of deadly assaults in the region. In June, 71 people were killed in the nearby village of Manda, while in March, 44 worshippers were slaughtered inside a mosque in Fambita.
The Sahel states, led by Niger, face a sharp escalation in violence, prompting them to form a joint military force of 5,000 troops to counter the spread of armed groups across the region.
