ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has strongly condemned the terrorist attacks in Tillaberi region of Niger that resulted in the loss of many precious lives.
In a statement, Foreign Office Spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri said the government and people of Pakistan extend their deepest sympathies and condolences to the bereaved families and pray for the speedy recovery of those injured.
He said Pakistan reiterates its unequivocal condemnation of terrorism in all forms and manifestations. He reaffirmed strong support and solidarity with the government and people of Niger in this moment of grief.
The incident occurred on Tuesday when armed men in southwestern Niger killed at least 58 people when they intercepted a convoy returning from a weekly market and attacked a nearby village,
The attacks occurred in the Tillabery region, which is near the border with Mali and Burkina Faso and have seen increasingly deadly attacks by armed groups active across the region.
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The mass killings underscore the enormous security challenges facing Niger’s new president, Mohamed Bazoum, who won the election in late February. Attackers killed at least 100 civilians on January 2 in raids on two villages in Tillabery, one of the deadliest episodes in the country’s recent history.
Niger’s government spokesman said the assailants this time intercepted four vehicles transporting passengers from a weekly market to nearby villages.
The violence is part of a wider security crisis in West Africa’s Sahe region. Many of the attacks are concentrated where the borders of Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso meet as armed groups active in the Tillaberi region.
