Niger attacks: Jihadist groups executing civilians and burning homes, HRW warns

Worshippers have been gunned down in mosques and homes have been torched in escalating violence, Human Rights Watch says.

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The rights group says gunmen carried out a series of brutal attacks, including a mass murder at a mosque in the western Tillabéri region in June, where more than 70 worshippers were shot dead during prayers.

"There were bodies everywhere, one on top of the other," a local woman, who lost three of her sons in the attack, was quoted by HRW as saying.

The spate of attacks is a major blow to the credibility of Niger's military junta, as it promised to curb the insurgency when it took power after deposing President Mohamed Bazoum in 2023.

About 1,600 civilians have been killed by Islamic State (IS) group fighters in Niger since the coup, HRW says, citing figures collected by the conflict monitoring group Acled.