Gunmen mounted on pick-up trucks and motorcycle killed at least eight gendarmes and wounded several in an attack on their base in western Niger, near the Mali border, on Saturday, two security sources according to Reuters. They crossed over the border from Mali and drove up to the village of Ayorou, about 40 km (25 miles) inside, before springing their attack, the security sources said.
Earlier this year, Niger declared a state of emergency along the portion of the border where the shooting took place.
Jihadists in the area have been increasingly active in Niger in recent times.
Further south, Niger also faces threats from the Nigerian Islamist group Boko Haram.
Niger security forces killed 57 Boko Haram militants sometime in April this year who had attacked a village in the southeastern Diffa region.
