[Source: Reuters]

Fifteen Nigerien soldiers have been killed and another 16 injured while battling armed militants, Niger’s defence ministry said in a statement read out on state television.

The military-led government said that 21 of the armed militants had also been killed in Monday’s fighting, which took place between the towns of Bankilare and Tera in the Tillaberi region.

Three soldiers were missing, it added.

Niger and its Sahel neighbours, Mali and Burkina Faso, are on the frontlines of the battle to contain a jihadist threat that has steadily grown since 2012, when al Qaeda-linked fighters first seized parts of Mali.

Thousands have been killed in the insurgencies and more than 3 million displaced, fuelling a deep humanitarian crisis in some of the world’s poorest countries.

Frustrations over authorities’ failure to protect civilians has spurred military coups in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger since 2020.