Three US Green Berets killed in Niger

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Three US Green Berets killed in Niger
5-Oct-2017 AFP/File / DOMINIQUE FAGET
RE: https://www.afp.com/en/news/23/three...s-killed-niger

Three US Green Berets and an unknown number of Nigerien soldiers were killed in a clash on the Niger-Mali border, where Islamic State fighters have established a presence, officials from said Thursday.

A joint US-Niger patrol fell into an ambush on Wednesday in the Tillaberi region in the country's southwest, requiring French Mirage 2000 fighter jets to be called in for air support.

Niger's President Mahamadou Issoufou said there were many casualties in the battle, and US Africa Command said two more Special Forces troops were wounded.

Another person from an unnamed country was also killed, according to the Pentagon statement, which did not specifically mention Nigerien casualties.

"Our country has just been attacked once more by terrorist groups, an assault which sadly has resulted in a large number of casualties," Issoufou said in the capital Niamey.

A French military spokesman said French helicopters had evacuated wounded from the scene and added that the fighting was continuing.

"The Nigerien operation is still ongoing, from what I know," said French Colonel Patrik Steiger.

"It is in the area of the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara," he said, using the name of the jihadist group's regional franchise.

The Pentagon said the clash took place approximately 200 kilometers (120 miles) north of Niamey. That puts the attack near the border with Mali, where armed jihadists are known to operate.

The two wounded US soldiers were evacuated to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany where they are in "stable condition," US Africa Command said.

The report confirmed the little-known presence of US troops in the turbulent area, part of the poor and politically fragile Sahel region where jihadist groups are mounting an insurgency.

Africa Command said in a statement that US Forces are in Niger "to provide training and security assistance to the Nigerien Armed Forces, in their efforts to counter violent extremist organizations in the region."

Steiger said French fighter jets were sent to the scene as a show of force, but did not drop any munitions to avoid hitting the forces on the ground.

Under the name Operation Barkhane, France maintains a 4,000-man mission in the region to shore up fragile Sahel countries against jihadists who have carried out a wave of bloody bombings, shootings and kidnappings.

- Extremist rebels -

Western militaries have been actively supporting Niger forces in their effort to prevent jihadist groups in the Sahel from establishing a strong presence in the country.

In February and March troops from the United States, Belgium, Australia and Canada, including US Special Forces, conducted a 17 day training operation with Nigerien troops focused on fighting extremist insurgents.

Issoufou did not put a number on how many Nigerien casualties there were in the clash.

He called for a minute's silence "to the memory of our soldiers who have fallen on the field of honour" and to the memory of "all victims of terrorism."

"Women and children pay a heavy price for terrorism, directly as innocent victims and indirectly as mothers and spouses," Issoufou said.

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Green Berets killed in Niger part of U.S. anti-terror team aiding local forces in Africa
Jim Michaels, USA TODAY Published 11:24 a.m. ET Oct. 5, 2017
RE: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/w...ica/734980001/


The three U.S. Army Special Forces soldiers killed in Niger were part of a broad American effort to train and support local forces as a bulwark against the emergence of militant groups in northwestern Africa.

U.S. Africa Command has deployed trainers and advisers throughout the continent to build relationships with local forces and support their counter-terrorism efforts.

“This Niger operation is very typical of how the U.S. operates on the continent,” said Joshua Meservey, a senior policy analyst at the Heritage Foundation, a Washington, D.C., think tank. Niger is a longtime U.S. counter-terrorism partner in the region.

The U.S. has occasionally attacked terrorists with drones or small raids in Africa, but the main mission of American troops there is to support local armed forces.

The team members killed in Niger were part of a contingent of about 800 U.S. troops in the country, U.S. Africa Command said. The U.S. is also establishing a drone base there.

The U.S. troops were killed Wednesday while “providing advice and assistance” to Niger’s forces in the southwestern part of the country, Africa Command said in a statement. A “partner nation” serviceman was also killed in the attack.

Two American soldiers were injured and have been evacuated to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany, where they are in stable condition.

It is not clear what group was responsible for the attack.

The country borders Mali and Libya, two unstable countries where al-Qaeda and the Islamic State have developed terrorist strongholds.

MORE: Green Berets killed in ambush (onsite link bottom of page)

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US Military Confirms Death of 3 Soldiers in Niger
RE: https://www.voanews.com/a/us-militar...r/4057645.html

The U.S. military has confirmed three U.S. service members were killed and two others injured when a joint U.S.-Niger military patrol was attacked Wednesday in southwestern Niger.

A U.S. defense official confirmed to VOA Thursday that the soldiers killed in the attack were members of the U.S. Army’s special forces, also known as Green Berets.

A statement from U.S. Africa Command says one soldier from a "partner nation" also was killed, whom a U.S. official confirmed was a member of the Niger Armed Forces.

Emmanuelle Lachaussee, an official at the French embassy in Washington, told VOA that French forces helped evacuate the U.S. soldiers after the assault.

No one has claimed responsibility for the attack on the patrol of about 10 U.S. and Nigerien soldiers. AFRICOM says the attack took place about 200 kilometers north of Niger's capital, Niamey, not far from the Niger-Mali border.

The United States has about 800 service members in Niger to provide support for the U.S. embassy and counter-terrorism training for government forces battling Islamist militant groups.

Nigeria-based Boko Haram operates in eastern Niger, while Algeria-based al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and pockets of Islamic State fighters operate in the west.

AFRICOM said the U.S. personnel were "providing advice and assistance to Nigerien security force counter-terror operations" when the patrol came under hostile fire Wednesday.

It said the two wounded soldiers were evacuated in stable condition to Landsthul Regional Medical Center in Germany.

The White House said President Donald Trump was briefed on the attack.

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3 US Army Special Ops Commandos Killed, 2 Wounded In Niger
By LOLITA C. BALDOR Published OCTOBER 5, 2017 9:59 AM
RE: http://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/3-...illed-in-niger

WASHINGTON (AP) — Niger’s President Mahamadou Issoufou has condemned the attack by Mali-based extremists in the country’s west that killed several Niger soldiers and three U.S. Army special operations commandos.

Issoufou said Thursday that Niger is once again the target of Islamic extremist attacks. He did not say how many Niger soldiers were killed, but said there were a number of victims.

U.S. officials said two U.S. Army special operations commandos were also wounded when they came under fire in southwest Niger late Wednesday while on a joint patrol near the Mali border.

The U.S. forces are in Niger to provide training and security assistance to the Nigerien Armed Forces in their fight against violent extremists.

The officials said the two wounded were taken to Niamey, the capital, and are in stable condition. The officials were not authorized to discuss the incident publicly so spoke on condition of anonymity.

The officials said the commandos, who were Green Berets, were likely attacked by al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb militants.

In a statement, U.S. Africa Command said the forces were with a joint U.S. and Nigerien patrol north of Niamey, near the Mali border, when they came under hostile fire.

Africa Command said the U.S. forces are in Niger to provide training and security assistance to the Nigerien Armed Forces in their efforts against violent extremists.

The White House said President Donald Trump was notified about the attack Wednesday night as he flew aboard Air Force One from Las Vegas to Washington.