Source: US News & World Report
“The West African affiliates of al Qaeda and Islamic State have clashed in Niger for the first time, according to a statement from one of the groups, a development that analysts said signals an intensification of their years-long rivalry. Al Qaeda-linked Jama’at Nusrat al‑Islam wal‑Muslimin (JNIM) and Islamic State in the Sahel Province (ISSP) engaged in their first skirmishes in 2019 and have since clashed hundreds of times, resulting in more than 2,100 deaths, according to Armed Conflict Location & Event Data (ACLED), a conflict monitoring group. That fighting had unfolded exclusively in Mali and Burkina Faso until last week when ISSP fighters attacked a JNIM position in the Tillaberi region of western Niger.” (04/09/26)