Nigeria air strike kills children in Niger 'by mistake'
The Nigerian army reportedly missed their target and struck a village in Niger's Maradi, leaving seven children dead and five others injured.
Four children died instantly and three others succumbed "to their injuries while being transported to hospital."
An air strike by the Nigerian army targeting 'bandits' has left seven children dead and five others wounded "by mistake" in the Maradi region of southern Niger.
"There was a mistake with the Nigerian strikes on the border that resulted in victims on our territory in the village of Nachade" on Friday, said Chaibou Aboubacar, governor of the Maradi region, on Sunday.
"The victims are 12 children, seven of them dead and five wounded." Four children died instantly and three others succumbed "to their injuries while being transported to hospital", he said.
According to the governor, "the parents were attending a ceremony and the children were probably playing when the strikes" hit them.
He believes the planes were targeting "armed bandits" in the border areas, but "missed their target" hitting Nachade instead.
READ MORE: Dozens killed in western Niger clashes
Relentless attacks
Several municipalities in the Maradi region are seriously affected by the violence of heavily armed gangs from the Nigerian states of neighbouring Katsina, Sokoto and Zamfara.
In 2018, Niamey - the capital of Niger - reinforced military patrols along its border with Nigeria to prevent the incursions of these gangs.
The gangs are known to carry out assassinations, kidnappings for ransom, attacks on traders and raids on cattle which they then lead into Nigeria.
In April 2021, International Crisis Group (ICG) said it feared a third militant centre could emerge in this region of Maradi, exploiting the actions of Nigerian gangs and conflicts between local communities.
Niger already faces two militant fronts. The Nigerian group Boko Haram and Daesh in West Africa, its dissident branch, are operating in the south-east while groups affiliated with Daesh and Al Qaeda are at work in the west.
According to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the Maradi is host to 100,000 Nigerian refugees, who have fled the relentless attacks in their country.
READ MORE: Gunmen stage deadly attack on local militia in southwest Niger
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