137 People Killed in Niger Massacre
The massacre, blamed on affiliates of the Islamic State, is the worst in recent memory and surpassed the January attack that killed 100, as well as an attack last week which left 58 civilians dead.
“In treating civilian populations systematically as targets now, these armed bandits have gone a step further into horror and brutality,” stated government representative Zakaria Abdourahamane, while addressing the public on television.
“The Islamic State in the Greater Sahara, a potent armed group with loose ties to the Islamic State, has been conducting sophisticated attacks in the border regions of Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso,” Wrote Ruth Maclean of the New York Times, “In the past four months, militants have raided four major military outposts in Mali and Niger, killing 300 soldiers.”
As Islamic extremism continues to grow in the area, Niger’s minority Christian community will experience increased violence at the hands of those who hate them most.
Source: ICC