Niamey: The Islamist armed group Islamic State in the Sahel Province (IS Sahel) has escalated attacks on civilians in Niger since March 2025, Human Rights Watch said today. The attacks violated international humanitarian law and are apparent war crimes.
According to African Press Organization, in at least five attacks across Niger's western Tillabéri region that Human Rights Watch documented, IS Sahel summarily executed over 127 villagers and Muslim worshipers, and burned and looted dozens of homes. Witnesses said the Nigerien army did not adequately respond to warnings of attacks, ignoring villagers' requests for protection. Protection strategies for residents in the region should be urgently overhauled to deter future attacks and create more responsive warning systems.
Islamist armed groups are targeting the civilian population in western Niger and committing abuses, said Ilaria Allegrozzi, senior Sahel researcher at Human Rights Watch. Nigerien authorities need to do more to protect people living in the Tillabéri region.
On June 21, IS Sahel fighters opened fire on worshipers in a mosque in Manda village, killing over 70 and injuring at least 20. The scene was described as chilling by a 77-year-old woman who lost three sons in the attack. She recounted that there were bodies everywhere, with the wounded screaming and bleeding.
On May 13, IS Sahel fighters attacked the hamlet of Dani Fari, killing five men and two boys, and burning at least a dozen homes. A herder reported that the bodies were scattered and riddled with bullets, with no body having fewer than three bullet holes.
Niger's military junta has been in power since July 26, 2023, when army officers of the self-proclaimed National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland, led by Brig. Gen. Abdourahamane Tiani, overthrew and detained the democratically elected president, Mohamed Bazoum. They cited the deteriorating security situation as one of the reasons for toppling Bazoum and promised to restore security in areas affected by Islamist armed groups.
The nongovernmental organization Armed Conflict Location and Event Data (ACLED) has reported that since the coup, IS Sahel has killed about 1,600 civilians. The junta security forces have conducted large counterinsurgency operations, including airstrikes, against the Islamist armed groups in conflict-affected areas. On August 3, the junta began an initiative known in the Hausa language as Garkuwar Kassa (Shields of the Homeland), aimed at recruiting and training civilians to assist the armed forces. However, this has raised concerns among human rights groups about creating abusive militias.
Human Rights Watch has previously reported on abuses by Islamist armed groups in Niger, including the killing of hundreds of civilians in 2021. Human Rights Watch also documented abuses by Niger’s security forces in 2021, including killings and enforced disappearances during counterinsurgency operations, and the junta's crackdown on the political opposition, media, and peaceful dissent.
All parties to Niger's armed conflict are bound by Common Article 3 to the 1949 Geneva Conventions and customary laws of war. International humanitarian law prohibits attacking civilians, mistreating anyone in custody, and burning and looting civilian property. Individuals who order, commit, or assist serious violations of the laws of war with criminal intent may be prosecuted for war crimes. The Niger government has an obligation to investigate and appropriately prosecute alleged war crimes committed within its territory.
Civilians threatened by Islamist armed groups are calling on Niger's junta to provide greater protection, Allegrozzi said. The government should take urgent steps to deter future atrocities, investigate serious abuses by IS Sahel and other armed groups, and bring those responsible to account based on international fair trial standards.