Niger Capital Rocked by Attacks on Airport, Presidency

By Al Mayadeen English

Source: Agencies

29 Aug 2026 08:41

Niger’s capital sees heavy overnight clashes as security forces launch search operations and report attackers neutralized.

Sustained gunfire and explosions were heard in several parts of Niger’s capital, Niamey, early Saturday, Reuters reported, citing two witnesses. The cause of the violence was not immediately known.

A security source told Reuters that “terrorists” had attacked Diori Hamani International Airport and sought to breach the security perimeter surrounding the presidency.

Bana Wagana Ibrahim, a member of Niger’s Bureau of the Consultative Council and a deputy in the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) Parliament, said on Facebook that attackers had targeted Base 101, a major military facility in Niamey, but that security forces had retaken control.

“Another cowardly attack on Base 101 and once again our defence and security forces ensured ... Situation under control,” Ibrahim wrote.

Attackers “neutralized”

A second security source told Reuters that security forces had begun search operations and that the attackers had been “neutralized,” while others had fled.

The second Reuters witness reported heavy and sustained gunfire around the presidential palace. According to the first witness, gunfire broke out again near Niamey’s international airport at about 0213 GMT.

Niger is key uranium producer

Niger, a resource-rich West African country with substantial uranium, oil and gold deposits, has been under military rule since a July 2023 coup that removed President Mohamed Bazoum.

After taking power, General Abdourahamane Tiani’s junta moved away from Western allies and joined Mali and Burkina Faso in the AES, which broke away from the regional ECOWAS bloc.

The three countries continue to fight insurgencies associated with al Qaeda and Islamic State, despite commitments from their military leaders to strengthen security.

Part of a wider break with Western control

Niger's formal notice comes as the Sahel bloc deepens its break with Western-backed political and security structures.

Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso have already withdrawn from the Economic Community of West African States, accusing the bloc of serving foreign agendas and imposing pressure on governments that chose an independent political path.

The three states have since moved forward with the Confederation of Sahel States, a framework aimed at strengthening regional cooperation, security coordination, and political independence.

Their leaderships have presented these decisions as part of a wider struggle to end external tutelage, particularly from France and Western institutions that long shaped the political and economic direction of the former French colonies.

What do you need to know?

The latest unrest comes as Niger’s junta increases its control over the country’s uranium industry, after taking over assets belonging to France’s Orano. A government decree last week reassigned former Orano and GoviEx uranium permits to state-backed companies.

Before the junta took control of Orano’s assets around 2024, Niger was an important supplier of nuclear fuel to Europe. At full capacity, the country accounted for about 15% of Orano’s uranium supply.

Earlier this year, deadly attacks killed at least 44 civilians in southwestern Niger in March, while an assault took place near Niamey’s international airport in January.