2016 Bani Bangou attack

Armed men attacked a Nigerien military outpost in Bani Bangou at around 5 a.m. on November 8, 2016.^[3] Seventeen soldiers were present at the time of the attack.^[4] The attackers arrived on ten motorcycles and two vehicles, and were led by ISGS commander Aboubacar Chapori, a close confidant of Sahrawi.^[4][5][6] Fighting between the attackers and the Nigerien forces lasted for around an hour.^[6] French planes from Operation Barkhane flew over the battle in a show of force, causing the jihadists to flee.^[7] The jihadists abandoned the Bani Bangou post with two machine-gun equipped vehicles, and headed towards Mali.^[6]

The ISGS did not claim responsibility for the attack, but French and Malian officials reported that ISGS and MOJWA militants were responsible.^[5][8] The Nigerien Ministry of the Interior reported that five Nigerien soldiers were killed, three were wounded, and four were taken hostage.^[5] Abdoul Wahid, who was taken hostage in the attack, stated that two soldiers were actually taken hostage, and the other was executed.^[4] Two of the jihadists were killed in the battle and 26 were arrested afterward.^[6] Wahid stated that the goal of the attackers was not jihad, but instead the killing of foreign soldiers.^[4]

• Niger Islamic State hostage: "They want to kill foreign soldiers," - Ruth Maclean, The Guardian, June 5, 2018