One hundred people were killed in terrorist attacks on two villages in western Niger, the Prime Minister Brigi Rafini said on Sunday.
The attacks on the villages of Tchoma Bangou and Zaroumadareye occurred on Saturday as first-round presidential and legislative results were announced.
They were waged by militants riding about 100 motorcycles, said Almou Hassane, the mayor of the Tondikiwindi commune that administers both villages.
“There were up to 70 dead in Tchoma Bangou and 30 in Zaroumadareye,” he told news agency AFP after returning from the scenes of the attacks.
The villages are 120 kilometres north of the capital Niamey.
“There have also been 75 wounded, some of whom have been evacuated to Niamey and to Ouallam for treatment,” Mr Hassane said.
The attackers split into two columns to carry out simultaneous attacks on the villages, which are seven kilometres apart, he said.
Locally elected officials reported the raids on Saturday.
Issoufou Issaka, a former government minister who is from the region, said the extremists carried out the double massacre after local people killed two of their members.
One senior regional official said the attack was carried out at midday, the moment the election results were announced.
Election officials said ruling party candidate and former minister Mohamed Bazoum won the first round of Niger’s presidential vote, which was held last weekend.
Mr Bazoum has promised to step up the fight against the extremists.
Departing president Mahamadou Issoufou tweeted his condolences to the people of the villages, condemning the “cowardly and barbaric attacks”.
The UAE strongly condemned the terrorist attacks, state news agency Wam said on Sunday.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation “affirmed the UAE’s strong condemnation of these criminal acts and its permanent rejection of all forms of violence and terrorism aimed at destabilising security and stability, in contravention of all religious and humanitarian values and principles”.
The ministry expressed its sincere condolences to the families of the victims and wished a quick recovery to the injured, Wam reported.
The two villages are in the vast and unstable Tillaberi region, in the area, where the porous borders of Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso meet. The area has suffered extremist attacks for years.
Four-thousand people across the three nations died in 2019 from violence and ethnic bloodshed, the UN said.
Seven Nigerien soldiers were killed in an ambush in Tillaberi on December 21.
Travel by motorbike has been banned in the area since last January in a bid to prevent incursions by extremists.
A landlocked state in the heart of the Sahel, Niger is also being hit by terrorists from Nigeria, the cradle of a decade-old insurgency launched by Boko Haram.
It claimed responsibility for an attack on December 12, that killed at least 34 people in the village of Toumour, in south-eastern Niger, the day before municipal and regional elections. The polls had been repeatedly delayed because of poor security.
The second round of the presidential election is on February 20.
Zayed Sustainability Prize
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Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
Meydan race card
6pm Dubai Trophy – Conditions(TB) $100,000 (Turf) 1,200m
6.35Dubai Trophy – Conditions(TB) $100,000 (Turf) 1,200m
1,800m
7.10pm Jumeirah Derby Trial – Conditions (TB) $60,000 (T)
1,800m ,400m
7.45pm Al Rashidiya – Group 2 (TB) $180,000 (T) 1,800m
8.20pm Al Fahidi Fort – Group 2 (TB) $180,000 (T) 1,400m
8.55pm Dubawi Stakes – Group 3 (TB) $150,000 (D) 1,200m
9.30pm Aliyah – Rated Conditions (TB) $80,000 (D) 2,000m
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