Niger: Terror attack kills at least 13 people at Niamey airport

Niger’s security situation has deteriorated further as a terrorist attack kills at least 13 people at Niamey airport, according to RFI and agencies on June 19th.

At least 11 soldiers and two civilians were killed in an attack on Niamey’s International Airport on June 18th; 22 attackers were “neutralised”, according to Niger’s Defence Ministry.

The ministry added that a “large-scale” army operation is underway; the airport is “fully secure” and “remains open to air traffic.”

JNIM, an al-Qaeda-affiliated militant group, claimed responsibility for the attack; the group stated it had conducted a “suicide attack” on the airport.

Explosions and gunfire were reported; attackers, some of whom were wearing explosive belts, targeted the airport’s main entrance on the civilian side, but were unable to reach the terminal building.

Niamey’s airport is a strategic hub that houses a uranium stockpile, military bases and the headquarters of the Niger-Burkina Faso-Mali Joint Force.

On January 29th, the Islamic State claimed responsibility for an attack on Niamey’s airport; however, Niger’s junta implicated, without evidence, France, Benin and the Ivory Coast.

Once again, without evidence, junta leader General Abdourahamane Tchiani has implicated France in the June 18th attack.

Niger and its Sahel allies, Mali and Burkina Faso, are former French colonies, along with Benin and the Ivory Coast.

Both Niger and Mali have accused Benin and the Ivory Coast of acting as French proxies to destabilise the Sahel because of their continued French ties.

To confront Islamist insurgencies, Niger, Burkina Faso and Mali established the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), a cooperation pact aimed at countering Islamist violence through shared military and intelligence resources.

Islamist militants are active throughout Niger, but are particularly active in the southwestern Tillabéri region, which borders Mali and Burkina Faso.

Furthermore, jihadists have become increasingly entrenched in the border region between Niger, Nigeria and Benin.

Data from the Global Terrorism Index indicated that the Sahel accounted for nearly half of terror-related deaths in 2025.

Since May 31st, demolitions of residential buildings in the airport area have occurred, with Niger’s junta citing security concerns as justification for evicting approximately 26,000 people.

Authorities claim the housing developments in the airport area are illegal, which residents have disputed.

Despite promising to rehouse and compensate residents affected by the evictions, Nigerien authorities have reportedly failed to do so, leaving many residents homeless.

Maghrebi attempted to contact Niger’s Defence Ministry for comment on the June 18th attack, but was unable to find contact details at the time of publication.

RFI and agencies, Maghrebi.org