On October 4, Nigerien and American soldiers were ambushed near the village of Tongo Tongo, located 80 km from Ouallam (Tillabéry region). Nearly a month later, this attack that killed eight people, including four Americans, has not been claimed. But suspicions are heading towards terrorist elements affiliated with Abu Walid Al-Sahrawi.
Tongo Tongo is well known to Nigerien intelligence services for its use by terrorists. This village in the Ouallam department, in southwestern Niger, is mainly populated by Zarma and Fulani.
On this October 4, the Nigerian-American patrol left Ouallam for the Malian border, seeking information on terrorists little known to the general public. This is mainly about Djoundjoun Cheiffou, close to the Fulani jihadist nicknamed Little Tchafori by the population, his war name «Kalidh».
According to a Nigerien security source, he was released by Niamey in secret in February 2016, in exchange for the Australian hostage, Jocelyn Elliott, abducted a few weeks earlier in Burkina Faso.
On their return from the village of In Tirzawane, about ten kilometers from the Malian border, this patrol was ambushed by terrorists who were holding a meeting near the village of Tongo Tongo, a local source told Sahelien.com.
According to our interlocutors, the militia operated under the orders of their leader, Abu Walid al-Sahrawi, very feared by the villagers. «Heavily-armed people come to tell us that they are God’s soldiers. They threaten us by forbidding us to talk to the army. Otherwise they will kill us, as they killed the guide of the Nigerien army in Ayorou 3 months ago. Nobody is protecting us against these terrorists. We are obliged to cooperate with them», said a resident of Tongo Tongo, who left his village to live in Ouallam.
In this border region with Mali, Abu Walid Al-Sahraoui found a favorable environment. «He proclaims himself the protector of this community against their enemies», said one resident.
T. Ousmane, another resident of the same village, says that areas like Tondikiwindi, Banibangu, Abala, In Tirzawane, Holamani, Tongo Tongo are controlled by Abu Walid’s men. Adding that «his generals claim taxes from people».
According to the Minister of the Interior, Bazoum Mohamed, the terrorists who lead the attacks against the Nigerien army in the area, «are children who have been in Nigerien prisons».
In the attack that killed the Nigerian and US soldiers in early October, three people suspected of complicity with the terrorists were arrested, according to the prosecutor general of the special court of Niamey.
The armed men present in the region are mostly ex-combatants of the Movement for Unity and Jihad in West Africa (MUJAO), withdrew to Adrar des Ifoghas and Niger, after the beginning of Operation Serval in January 2013 in northern Mali, said a security source adding that Walid Abou recruited between 100 and 200 fighters. «Repetitive attacks on the positions of the Nigerian army aim to create fear among the population and strengthen their logistics by taking after each attack, military equipment. This method allows them to perpetrate other attacks».
Sahelien.com