Niger Says 17 of its Soldiers Killed in Ambush Near Burkina Faso Border 

Nigerien soldiers are seen in Niamey during pro-coup rallies. (AFP file photo)
Nigerien soldiers are seen in Niamey during pro-coup rallies. (AFP file photo)
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Niger Says 17 of its Soldiers Killed in Ambush Near Burkina Faso Border 

Nigerien soldiers are seen in Niamey during pro-coup rallies. (AFP file photo)
Nigerien soldiers are seen in Niamey during pro-coup rallies. (AFP file photo)

Niger's defense ministry said that 17 of its soldiers had been killed in an ambush on Tuesday in a southwest region bordering Burkina Faso.

Attacks in Niger have been falling since 2021 but security remains a major problem, especially in the southwest near the border with neighboring Mali.

On the Malian side, the departure of French troops last year left a security vacuum that groups linked to ISIS and Al-Qaeda have expanded into.

A detachment of Niger's army was attacked in an ambush next to Torodi commune, the defense ministry said in a statement. It added that more than a hundred "terrorists" were neutralized.

"The swift reaction of the soldiers and the air-land response at the scene of the skirmish enabled the enemy to be dealt with," the statement said.



Ukraine Intensifies its Long-Range Strikes, Sinking a Russian Submarine and Striking an Airfield

A Ukrainian serviceman checks a mortar during a military exercise, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kherson region, Ukraine August 1, 2024. REUTERS/Ivan Antypenko
A Ukrainian serviceman checks a mortar during a military exercise, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kherson region, Ukraine August 1, 2024. REUTERS/Ivan Antypenko
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Ukraine Intensifies its Long-Range Strikes, Sinking a Russian Submarine and Striking an Airfield

A Ukrainian serviceman checks a mortar during a military exercise, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kherson region, Ukraine August 1, 2024. REUTERS/Ivan Antypenko
A Ukrainian serviceman checks a mortar during a military exercise, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kherson region, Ukraine August 1, 2024. REUTERS/Ivan Antypenko

Ukraine has sunk a Russian submarine and hit a Russian airfield in the past 24 hours, in line with a surge of long-range attacks against Russian targets, officials said. Russia said Ukrainian drones also hit an apartment building, killing one person.
The uptick in attacks since July come as Ukraine mounts pressure on allies to allow it to use long-range missiles to strike targets in Russia. Western allies, in particular the US, have so far resisted, fearing escalation from Moscow, The Associated Press said.
Ukraine struck a Russian Kilo-class submarine and an S-400 anti aircraft missile complex in the Moscow-occupied Crimean peninsula, according to a statement from the General Staff on Saturday. The air defense system was established to protect the Kerch Strait Bridge, an important logistics and transport hub supplying Russian forces.
Units of the missile forces, as well as the Navy damaged four launchers of the Triumph air defense system, while in the port of Sevastopol, the “Rostov-on-Don” — a submarine of Russia’s Black Sea fleet — was attacked and sank, the statement said.
The General Staff also confirmed that Ukrainian forces struck the Morozovsk airfield in the Rostov region after launching a massive drone barrage on Russia. Hits were recorded in warehouses with ammunition, where guided aerial bombs were stored. The operation was carried out by the Security Service of Ukraine, the Main Directorate of Intelligence and the Defense Ministry, the statement said.
Meanwhile, Belgorod Gov. Vyacheslav Gladkov said that a woman was killed in a Ukrainian drone strike on an apartment building in the town of Shebekino early Sunday. Ukrainian drones also damaged several other buildings in the town, he said.
Gladkov said eight civilians have been wounded in the region by Ukrainian shelling and dozens of drone strikes since the previous day.
In the span of a month, Russia has experienced a surge in the tempo of Ukrainian drone barrages and long-range attacks, targeting Russian military infrastructure, including airfields and oil depots. Analysts say such an intensification is needed if Ukraine is to degrade Russian capabilities.