NIAMEY, Niger — Heavy gunfire and explosions erupted early Thursday at Niger’s main international airport in Niamey, residents said, in what appeared to be the latest assault by armed militants in the West African nation.
Witnesses said that the shooting began around 6 a.m. local time and lasted nearly two hours near the entrance to Diori Hamani International Airport. “I heard the first gunshots while I was at the mosque,” one resident said. “The situation is now under control.”
Security forces repelled the attackers, who fled and reportedly abandoned their weapons, according to residents. The army has launched a manhunt, though authorities have not yet issued an official statement. No group immediately claimed responsibility.
The incident comes just months after suspected Islamic State-linked fighters stormed the same airport in January, injuring four soldiers and killing 20 assailants, according to Niger’s defense ministry. At the time, the military government accused France, Benin and Ivory Coast of backing the attackers, while thanking Russia for its assistance though it offered no evidence.
Niger, like its neighbors Burkina Faso and Mali, has been battling Islamist insurgencies for more than a decade. Militants linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State have carried out frequent attacks on military bases, convoys and civilian targets, killing thousands and displacing millions across the Sahel region.
In Burkina Faso, militants attacked a hotel and café near Ouagadougou’s airport in 2016, killing dozens. In Mali, gunmen stormed Bamako’s Radisson Blu hotel in 2015, targeting foreigners and security forces. Niger’s Tillabéri region has seen repeated ambushes on military convoys, with hundreds of soldiers killed in recent years.
Videos posted on X (formerly Twitter) showed residents sheltering as gunfire echoed across Niamey. Many praised the army’s swift response, while others voiced concern about the capital’s growing vulnerability. Security experts say the attack underscores the shift of violence from rural border regions to strategic urban centers, including Niamey.
The airport, a strategic hub for military operations including drone surveillance, remains under tight security. Flights were temporarily disrupted, though operations were expected to resume later in the day.
