Gunmen attacked Diori Hamani International Airport in Niamey early on June 18, killing 11 soldiers and two civilians, Nigerien authorities said. Security forces killed 22 of the attackers during the exchange and described the assault as foiled.
The Defense Ministry said 20 suspects were arrested and that weapons and ammunition were seized. Witnesses heard gunfire and explosions, while soldiers searched people traveling on the airport road after the fighting. The supplied account did not identify those detained or state what charges they might face.
Niger’s National Civil Aviation Agency said the airport was functioning normally several hours later. That update indicated that flights or airport operations had resumed, but the evidence did not describe damage to runways, terminals or military facilities.
The airport is both a civilian gateway and a strategic security site. It accommodates a Nigerien air force installation and the headquarters of a combined military force involving Niger, Burkina Faso and Mali. Those three countries form the Alliance of Sahel States, often abbreviated AES.
The June assault was the second attack on the airport during 2026. Islamic State claimed an earlier operation in January aimed at Niger’s drone capabilities. The military strengthened security afterward, yet the later attackers were still able to initiate a deadly confrontation. No organization was reported to have claimed the June attack in the supplied evidence.
Niger has been governed by a military junta since a 2023 coup. It is among several Sahel countries struggling with armed Islamist violence; neighboring Burkina Faso and Mali are also under military rule. This regional setting explains the airport’s military importance but does not establish who planned the latest assault.
Beverly Ochieng, a senior analyst at Control Risks, said the airport’s role as the alliance headquarters makes it symbolically attractive to militants. That was an analytical assessment rather than an official attribution for the June 18 attackers.
The casualty figures show losses on both sides of the confrontation: 13 people among soldiers and civilians, plus 22 alleged attackers. Authorities also reported 20 arrests, meaning the detained group was distinct from those killed. At the historical reporting point, officials had restored airport operations and secured material from suspects, but they had not publicly identified a responsible group, explained how the gunmen reached the site or disclosed whether further attackers were being sought.
Nor did the ministry provide casualty figures for the detained suspects or identify the seized weapons. The distinction between people arrested and those killed matters when assessing the claimed scale of the assault and any continuing inquiry into support networks.
