Gunfire Erupts Near Niamey Airport Amid Renewed Security Concerns

By Al Mayadeen English

Source: Agencies

18 Jun 2026 15:19

The gunfire was still ongoing about two hours later.

Heavy gunfire broke out near the entrance of Niger's Diori Hamani International Airport in the capital, Niamey, early Thursday, according to local residents, raising fresh security concerns months after the facility was targeted in a major jihadist assault.

"I heard the first shots around 6 o'clock (0500 GMT). The shooting was coming from the airport entrance," one resident told AFP by telephone, adding that the gunfire was still ongoing about two hours later.

A second resident also told AFP that the shooting originated from the airport entrance.

The incident comes several months after an unprecedented attack on the airport in January, which was claimed by the Islamic State in the Sahel (EIS). Nigerien security forces, supported by allied Russian fighters, said they repelled that assault.

The January attack marked a significant escalation, as militant violence had previously been concentrated in other regions of the country rather than the capital.

In the aftermath of the assault, authorities demolished thousands of unauthorized homes in a densely populated neighborhood near the airport, saying militants had infiltrated the area to carry out the operation.

Niger, located in the Sahel region of West Africa, has spent the past decade confronting armed groups affiliated with Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State, with insurgent violence continuing to pose one of the country's most serious security challenges.