A US army vehicle was damaged in a mine explosion in western Niger, but there were no fatalities, and the US military was investigating whether the incident was hostile, embassy and local security forces said on Sunday.

The incident occurred in Ouallam in the Tillaberi region, not far from the border with Mali, where four US soldiers and five Niger soldiers were killed in an ambush in 2017, according to the sources.

"A US mine-resistant, ambush-protected all-terrain vehicle was damaged in Niger" on Saturday, the US embassy in Niamey said in a statement.

Ouallam is located about 100 kilometres (62 miles) from Niamey and is home to a major training camp of the Nigerien army where soldiers are trained to participate in the UN Mission in Mali, known as Minusma.

"The incident occurred outside a weapons range, so it is possible that non-hostile factors were the cause of the damage," it said. "We're still looking to confirm that element."

The US mission in Niger has been heavily scrutinised in the wake of the 2017 attack.

In that October 4 ambush, US special forces soldiers and Nigerien troops were attacked by fighters affiliated with the Islamic State group and equipped with small arms, grenades and trucks mounted with guns.

The US Pentagon has remained tight-lipped about the circumstances surrounding the ambush and the nature of the mission in Niger.

The US operates an aerial drone base in Agadez that provides surveillance of Boko Haram fighters and others allied with Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) that operate along borders with Libya, Mali and Nigeria.

Niamey has also given the US permission to base armed drones on its soil.

On May 14, 2019, 28 Niger soldiers were killed near the village of Tongo Tongo when they were ambushed "by heavily armed terrorists," according to the Niger government.

US military vehicle hit by bomb in Niger
Washington (AFP) June 9, 2019 - A US military vehicle was hit by an improvised explosive device in Niger, site of a deadly jihadist attack on American forces in 2017, the military announced Sunday.

The Mine Resistant Ambush Protected All-Terrain Vehicle activated the bomb "while entering a firing range in the vicinity of Ouallam, Niger on June 8, 2019" during a joint training exercise, US Africa Command said in a statement.

"There are no reported US casualties, however, as a precaution, US service members are being evaluated," it said, adding that Nigerien forces had secured the scene of the blast.

Four American soldiers and four Nigerien soldiers were killed in an October 2017 ambush in the country, when scores of jihadists overran their convoy in southwestern Niger, near the border with Mali.

The ambush claimed the largest number of American lives in combat anywhere in sub-Saharan Africa since the "Black Hawk Down" incident in Somalia in 1993.

Niger is one of a number of poor, fragile countries in the Sahel region that have been hit by a jihadist revolt.

Various insurgent groups operate in the country's west and north, and Nigeria's Boko Haram is present in its southeast.

The country is part of the so-called G5 Sahel group set up to manage a coordinated response to the jihadist insurgency.

Related Links
Space War News

Tweet

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only

Pompeo airs frank Mideast peace plan views in leak
Washington (AFP) June 3, 2019
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is worried the Trump administration's soon-to-be-released Middle East peace plan will be considered "unworkable," and might not gain traction, US media reported on Sunday. Pompeo's remarks to a private meeting of Jewish leaders, first reported by The Washington Post, show that even the plan's own backers expect the latest United States blueprint for ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict to be met with deep skepticism. The economic components of the proposal ar ... read more