Iran Offers Condolences to Niger over Deadly Terrorist Attack

Foreign Ministry Spokesman Nasser Kanaani on Wednesday voiced deep regret over Tuesday’s terrorist attack in the Tillaberi region in Niger.

Kanaani offered condolences to the government and the Muslim people of Niger, particularly the families of the victims, and sympathized with them over the painful loss.

Kanaani noted that the Islamic Republic of Iran considers terrorism a serious threat to human society and international security.

He added that the Islamic Republic also underlines the need for cooperation and all-out efforts on the part of the international community to deal with this common threat, the Foreign Ministry’s website reported.

Twenty Nigerien soldiers and a civilian were killed in an attack by “a coalition of terrorist groups” in western Niger on Tuesday, the government said.

The incident occurred around 10 a.m. local time when a detachment of the Defense and Security Forces was attacked on the outskirts of the village of Tassia in the Tillaberi region in the tri-border area, the defense ministry said in a statement.

At least nine other soldiers were wounded, it added.

The military government declared three days of national mourning from Wednesday, during which flags will fly at half-mast.

The ministry said the army later launched an operation in which dozens of terrorists were killed and their means of transport destroyed.