News Story

In under a decade, Niger's western Tillaberi region has become the bloody frontline of a conflict pitting the country and its neighbours against jihadists allied with Al-Qaeda or the Islamic State group.

Straddling the porous borderlands between Niger and its fellow unrest-hit allies in Mali and Burkina Faso, the region has become a place where jihadists "kill, pillage and ransom", Amadou Arouna Maiga, co-ordinator for the "Tillaberi Union for Peace and Security", told AFP.

Despite coming to power in a 2023 coup on a pledge to stem the violence, Niger's military junta has struggled to rein in IS jihadists and the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM), Al-Qaeda's branch in the Sahel region.

Years after the jihadists first entered the region in 2017, Tillaberi's vast expanse even became the bloodiest part of the central Sahel for civilians in 2025, according to the ACLED conflict monitor.

That makes it the deadliest region of a corner of the world which the Global Terrorism Index has named the "global epicentre of terrorism" for two years running.

"The situation is still dire... Schools and health centres are closed and markets are no longer bustling," Maiga lamented.

- Nearly 1,300 dead last year -

Of the 1,939 deaths in Niger recorded by ACLED last year, the Tillaberi region accounted for nearly 1,300 of them.

Half of the deaths came from clashes between jihadist groups and Nigerien forces, while the other half was from violence targeting civilians, ACLED analyst Heni Nsaibia told AFP.

Among the worst of the raids: an attack on a baptism ceremony that left 22 civilians dead, another that killed 71 at a Muslim sermon and a raid on a mosque that left 44 dead.

Thirty-four soldiers lost their lives in another attack, while two mayors were assassinated.

While ACLED blames the jihadists for most of the violence, the monitor has also pointed the finger at Niger's army in some cases of violence against civilians.

To protect themselves, many locals have set up self-defence militias.

But those volunteer fighters, poorly trained and outgunned, have often fallen prey to the better-armed jihadists.

At least 25 civilian militia members were killed near Mali in one attack at the end of February.

- 'Executed in public' -

Tillaberi's explosion of unrest can be explained by its strategic position at the crossroads of Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso, where jihadists likewise roam freely, Nsaibia explained.

While well-intentioned, the increasing number of local militias "has also intensified communal tensions and local rivalries", he said.

Other factors -- including the Nigerien army's counter-offensives, the bloody rivalry between IS jihadists and the JNIM, and the latter's expansion southwards towards the capital Niamey -- have likewise contributed to the deadly cocktail, the researcher added.

"The terrorists are targeting symbols of the state, burning and ransacking schools and health centres, and persecuting or even assassinating civil servants and local leaders," said a nurse from the region, who told AFP she had fled to the capital Niamey after receiving "death threats".

Several politicians and religious or traditional leaders have followed suit in fleeing Tillaberi.

"Stubborn people and those suspected of collaborating with the army are whipped or executed in public," the nurse said.

- 'No work, no money' -

Residents living in the jihadists' fiefdoms are forced to pay tribute and accept the rulings of improvised Islamic law courts, according to one local official from Makalondi, near Burkina Faso.

Insecurity is just around the corner on the region's main highways, with transport often taking place under stringent military escort, he added.

The military also believes that the "dozens of illegal gold-mining" sites across the region's 100,000-square-kilometre expanse (38,600 square miles) provide a precious source of revenue for the jihadist groups, allowing them to buy weapons and pay their fighters.

On top of that, the region's economy has tanked as a result of the anti-jihadist measures imposed by the authorities, including the state of emergency, a ban on riding the motorcycles favoured by the fighters and the closure of many markets and petrol stations.

"No work, no money, life is very tough," one taxi driver complained in Tera, a town in Tillaberi.

Nsaibia fears a future where violence against civilians persists, local militias continue to expand and the jihadists keep pushing southwards from Tillaberi.

Should that come to pass, "Tillaberi is unlikely to see a significant reduction in violence in 2026," the researcher predicted.