Benin claims it has neutralized eight jihadists near the country’s northwest border with Togo and Burkina Faso.
The authorities in Cotonou said government troops had foiled an attack by the jihadists on Tuesday evening.
A statement from the army said the jihadists attempted to infiltrate its position in Materi, a town in northwest Benin, near the Togolese and Burkina Faso borders.
“At least eight terrorists were eliminated and important war materials, communications and procurement equipment commandeered” the Beninese Armed Forces said.
The assailants, after being reportedly caught unawares by Operation Mirador managed to detonate an improvised mine.
“The rest of the terrorist team tried to attack the nearby Beninese forces position,” they said.
The army said the response from its soldiers deployed in Nouari, in the Dassari district led to the jihadists being disarmed.
The army said it is combing the region to eliminate further threats from the jihadist insurgents.
For several months, the jihadist push in Burkina Faso has threatened to spill over into Benin.
In December 2021, a raid by the jihadists killed two soldiers and one assailant in Porga, in the north of the country, on the edge Burkina Faso.
Several security sources blamed the raid on one of the small militias affiliated with the ‘Groupe de Soutien à l’Islam et aux Musulmans’ (GSIM).
ODL/id/fss/as/APA