Gunmen kill at least 58 in attack on Niger market sellers
Niamey (Niger): Gunmen on motorcycles attacked a group of civilians returning from market day in a volatile corner of Niger, leaving at least 58 people dead and then burning granaries to the ground, the government has said.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for Monday's massacres, though extremists belonging to the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara group are known to be active in the Tillaberi region where the villages were attacked.
The victims were returning home from a large livestock market in Banibangou, near Niger's troubled border with Mali. The suspected extremists also destroyed nearby granaries that held valuable food stores.
The announcement was read on Niger state television Tuesday evening by government spokesman Abdourahmane Zakaria , who declared three days of national mourning for the victims.
Monday's attacks underscore the enormous security challenges facing Niger's new president, Mohamed Bazoum, who won the election in late February to succeed outgoing leader Mahamadou Issoufou.
Not only are jihadis active in the Tillaberi region, but the counterterrorism offensives against those extremists have helped given rise to ethnic militias, analysts say. Intercommunal tensions have been exacerbated as a result, particularly near the border between Mali and Niger.
Monday's attack echoed a January massacre that left 100 people dead in two villages also in the Tillaberi region that hadn't been claimed by any extremist group or militia.
Extremists staged mass attacks on Niger's military in the Tillaberi region, killing more than 70 in December 2019 and more than 89 in January 2020. It's near the area where four U.S. Special Forces soldiers were killed along with five Nigerien colleagues in 2017. (AP)
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
International Federation of Journalists says 128 journalists killed worldwide in 2025
Majority killed in conflict zones
Brussels, Belgium: A total of 128 journalists lost their lives across the world in 2025, with more than half of the deaths recorded in the Middle East, the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) said on Thursday.
According to the global press body, the Palestinian territories accounted for the highest number of fatalities, with 56 media professionals killed as Israel’s war with Hamas continued in Gaza. IFJ General Secretary Anthony Bellanger described the situation as unprecedented, saying the concentration of deaths in such a small geographical area over a short period had not been seen before.
“This is not just a statistic. It is a global red alert for our colleagues,” Bellanger told AFP, warning that the scale of violence against journalists reflected a deepening crisis for press freedom worldwide.
Journalists were also killed in several other countries during the year, including Yemen, Ukraine, Sudan, Peru and India. This shows the risks faced by media workers in both conflict zones and politically volatile regions.
Bellanger also criticised the lack of accountability for attacks on journalists, arguing that impunity continued to fuel violence against the press. Without justice, he said, those responsible for targeting journalists are emboldened to continue.
The IFJ report said 533 journalists were currently imprisoned, a figure that has more than doubled over the past five years. China remained the world’s largest jailer of journalists, with 143 reporters detained, including several in Hong Kong, where the imposition of national security laws has drawn criticism from Western governments.
The IFJ noted that its death toll is typically higher than figures released by other watchdogs due to differences in methodology. Its count for 2025 includes nine journalists who died in accidents. In comparison, Reporters Without Borders reported 67 journalists killed in the line of duty during the year, while UNESCO placed the number at 93.
