Gunmen kill 2 Indians and abduct third in Niger
Local media in Niger identified the victims as workers at a construction site in Dosso, located 140 kilometers (87 miles) from the country's capital of Niamey. Foreigners are increasingly becoming targets of armed groups in Niger. Several of them have been kidnapped this year, including an Austrian woman who has lived in Niger as an aid worker for more than 20 years, a Swiss woman seized from her home in April and five Indian workers, also in April.
Niger has for many years battled a jihadi insurgency linked to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group, a security crisis that analysts say has worsened since the military toppled the country's government in July 2023, and has since struggled to restore peace in hot spots. According to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project, June was one of the country's deadliest months on record as IS-backed fighters launched a major offensive across the Tillaberi and Dosso regions, killing more than 100 civilians in what marked a return to mass atrocities in rural areas.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Arab Times
5 hours ago
- Arab Times
Kim Jong Un's sister rejects outreach by South Korea's new president
SEOUL, South Korea, July 28, (AP): The influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un rebuffed overtures by South Korea's new liberal government, saying Monday that its "blind trust' in the country's alliance with the US and hostility toward North Korea make it no different from its conservative predecessor. Kim Yo Jong's comments imply that North Korea - now preoccupied with its expanding cooperation with Russia - sees no need to resume diplomacy with South Korea and the US anytime soon. Experts say she likely hopes to drive a wedge between Seoul and Washington. "We clarify once again the official stand that no matter what policy is adopted and whatever proposal is made in Seoul, we have no interest in it and there is neither a reason to meet nor an issue to be discussed,' Kim Yo Jong said in a statement carried by state media. It's North Korea's first official statement on the government of South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, which took office in early June with a promise to improve badly frayed ties with North Korea. Lee's government has halted anti-Pyongyang frontline loudspeaker broadcasts, taken steps to ban activists from flying balloons with propaganda leaflets across the border and repatriated North Koreans who were drifted south in wooden boats months earlier. North Korea has shunned talks with South Korea and the US since leader Kim Jong Un's high-stakes nuclear diplomacy with President Donald Trump fell apart in 2019 due to wrangling over international sanctions. North Korea has since focused on building more powerful nuclear weapons targeting its rivals and declared a hostile "two-state' system on the Korean Peninsula to terminate relations with South Korea. Kim Yo Jong called Lee's steps "sincere efforts' to develop ties, but said the new government still "stands in confrontation' with North Korea. She mentioned the upcoming summertime South Korea-U.S. military drills, which North Korea views as an invasion rehearsal. South Korea's Unification Ministry responded that it will steadfastly seek reconciliation with North Korea to realize peaceful co-existence. Spokesperson Koo Byoungsam told reporters that the statement shows North Korea closely monitors the Lee government's North Korea policy despite deep mistrust.
Arab Times
5 hours ago
- Arab Times
Cambodian and Thai leaders hold ceasefire talks in Malaysia
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, July 28, (AP): Ceasefire talks have started between Thai and Cambodian leaders in Malaysia in an urgent effort to resolve deadly border clashes that entered a fifth day despite mounting international calls for peace. Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet and Thai Acting Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai gathered Monday for the meeting at the official residence of Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim who is hosting the negotiations as chair of the regional bloc, Association of Southeast Asian Nations. The fighting flared last Thursday after a land mine explosion along the border wounded five Thai soldiers. Both sides blamed each other for starting the clashes, that have killed at least 35 people and displaced more than 260,000 people on both sides. Both countries recalled their ambassadors and Thailand shut all border crossings with Cambodia, with an exception for migrant Cambodian workers returning home. Troops from both sides reported ongoing fighting Monday along border areas. Gunfire could be heard as dawn broke in Samrong in Cambodia's Oddar Meanchey province, Associated Press reporters covering the conflict said. Maly Socheata, a Cambodian defense ministry spokesperson, said the Thai assault was "ongoing and strong' on Monday. Anwar said late Sunday that both sides would present their conditions for peace but "what is important is immediate ceasefire.' "I hope this can work,' Anwar was quoted as saying by Malaysian national news agency Bernama. "Although it's not as bad as many other countries, we have to put a stop (to the violence).' The meeting followed direct pressure from USPresident Donald Trump, who has warned that the United States may not proceed with trade deals with either country if hostilities continue. Before departing for Kuala Lumpur, Phumtham told reporters in Bangkok that representatives from China and the US will also attend as observers. He said the key focus would be on an immediate ceasefire, but noted trust could be an issue as Cambodia has not stopped its strikes. "We have informed that we don't have trust in Cambodia. All they have done reflect that they are not sincere in solving this problem. So they have to show the detail how they will do to prove their sincerity,' he said. Officials later said that the Chinese and American ambassadors to Malaysia are attending the meeting. The violence marks a rare instance of open military confrontation between ASEAN member states, a 10-nation regional bloc that has prided itself on non-aggression, peaceful dialogue and economic cooperation.
Arab Times
5 hours ago
- Arab Times
Boat capsizes in Nigeria's Niger state and at least 25 people feared dead
ABUJA, Nigeria, July 28, (AP): A boat transporting passengers to a market in north-central Nigeria capsized, killing at least 25 people, authorities said Sunday. The accident happened Saturday near Gumu village in the Shiroro area of Niger state, Ibrahim Hussaini, an official with the National Emergency Management Agency, told The Associated Press. Hussaini said search and rescue efforts were underway, but are limited because armed gangs mostly control the area. He added that the number of casualties may rise. "Very few people can go to the scene because of banditry in that area,' he told the AP. Armed groups, commonly referred to as bandits, have stepped up attacks in recent months in the north-central region, complicating rescue efforts. The accident is the latest in a series of deadly boat accidents on Nigerian waterways, where accidents are common in remote communities, especially during the rainy season, due to overloaded and poorly maintained vessels. In September last year, a boat carrying mostly farmers capsized on a river in the northwestern state of Zamfara, drowning at least 40 people. At least 326 people died in boat accidents in Nigeria in 2024, according to a count by TheCable, a local media outlet. Analysts say many boats operate without life jackets and blame weak enforcement by regulatory authorities.
