One aid worker kidnapped in Abalak

Islamic State-linked gunmen, suspected al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, stormed the house of an American NGO worker in Abalak and kidnapped him. It is reported that he is being transported to Mali. It is believed that this is the first incident where an American has been abducted in Niger, although another failed attempt was made in 1999 on U.S. embassy staff. Two guards were also killed in the attack. In a September 2019 interview the Nigerien President confirmed the kidnapped aid worker is still alive. The aid worker was released on the 20th of March, 2023, with a French journalist who was in captivity in Mali. Means of attack recorded as kidnapping. Context raid. Actor Al-Qaeda (affiliated). Source: Aid Worker Security Database, incident 2178.