Gunmen attacked the house of a U.S. aid worker in central Niger overnight, left two of his guards dead before driving him off across the desert towards Mali, according to the mayor of the town on Saturday.
The mayor of Abalak, Ahmed Dilo said to Reuters on phone that, "first they came on a motorbike and killed the guards, then a 4×4 came and took him away and drove towards the Mali border."
Residents reported hearing gunfire near the aid worker’s house, where he had been living for years. Dilo said a Nigerien soldier was among the guards killed.
The militants and allied criminal gangs have long exploited the largely unpoliced desert spaces of the Sahara and attacks have increased this year as security worsens in Mali.
No U.S. citizen has been kidnapped in Niger before, although in 2009 suspected Islamists attempted to abduct U.S. embassy personnel from a hotel in the town of Tahoua.
A U.S. embassy spokeswoman said there was an investigation into the incident but could not confirm any additional details. Niger security forces did not immediately comment.
Comments