TWO SOLDIERS KILLED AS LANDMINE EXPLODES IN BENIN REPUBLIC
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Agency Report
According to two security officials and a local, on Wednesday, two Benin soldiers were murdered when the motorbike they were travelling on in the country’s north collided with an improvised explosive device.
At first, no organisation took ownership of the tragedy in the Karimama area near the Niger border.
However, northern Benin has witnessed an increase in the possibility of violence from jihadists in the Sahel spreading across its border, just like its neighbouring Ghana, Togo, and Ivory Coast.
“We lost two of our men on Tuesday. It wasn’t an attack but they drove over a homemade landmine,” the military source said.
A local resident and a police source with knowledge of the area verified the details.
Two local private newspapers also reported on the event; the Benin army did not respond to requests for comment right after.
Northern Benin borders Burkina Faso and Niger, the battlegrounds of which are being fought by Islamic State and Al-Qaeda affiliates.
A coup in July also prompted the French forces stationed there to begin their withdrawal, adding to concerns about the Sahel region’s escalating insecurity.
Benin authorities have sent 3,000 troops to reinforce the frontier since January last year.
Benin’s government rarely makes public statements about violence on its borders, but in April officials acknowledged that since 2021 they have seen around 20 incursions from across the border.
AFP
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