Benin’s military has suffered significant losses following an attack near the border with insurgency-affected Niger and Burkina Faso, according to authorities.
Colonel Faizou Gomina, the Chief of Staff of the National Guard, confirmed that one of Benin’s most well-equipped military positions in the north was targeted on Wednesday evening. “We’ve been dealt a very hard blow,” Col. Gomina said.
While the identity of the attackers remains unclear, the northern region of Benin has increasingly become a hotspot for attacks, which are often attributed to jihadist groups from neighboring countries.
Over 120 Beninese soldiers have been killed between 2021 and December 2024, according to a diplomatic source.
Last month, gunmen killed three soldiers and injured four others guarding an oil pipeline in the northeast.
Col. Gomina did not specify the number of casualties from Wednesday’s attack, but opposition party The Democrats reported that approximately 30 soldiers were killed in the Alibori region. A security source has estimated the death toll at 28.
“We are continuing cleaning-up operations. Forty assailants have been neutralised so far,” the military source added.
Col Gomina said the position attacked had been “one of the strongest and most militarised” and called on military commanders to improve their operational strategies in order to counter security threats.
“Wake up, officers and section chiefs, we have battles to win,” he said.
In 2022, Benin deployed nearly 3,000 troops to curb cross-border incursions and reinforce security in the north.
