Local residents said the incident occurred at around 11:00 pm on Wednesday in Mailo village, located in the Dosso region, according to AFP on Friday, December 26, 2025.
Gunmen attacked a church in the South-West of Niger Republic, killing a husband and his wife after opening fire during a late-night Christian service.
Local residents said the incident occurred at around 11:00 pm on Wednesday in Mailo village, located in the Dosso region, according to AFP on Friday, December 26, 2025.
Niger Republic, a Sahel nation, has been gripped for more than a decade by an insurgency involving armed groups linked to Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group.
According to a local resident who requested anonymity, the attack began while worshippers were attending mass.
“The attack happened in Mailo village at around 11:00 pm on Wednesday night. Christians were attending mass in the church when armed individuals came in and fired into the air. There was panic,” AFP quoted the source as saying.
The witness added that the couple attempted to escape but were pursued by the attackers.
“A man and his wife ran and hid in their house but (the assailants) followed them and they were killed.”
Another resident said the gunfire caused worshippers to flee, with some escaping to neighbouring villages while others sought refuge in the surrounding bush.
According to residents, the attackers also stole cattle before leaving the area.
The Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (ACLED), a non-governmental organisation that tracks political violence worldwide, said nearly 2,000 people have been killed in conflict-related violence in Niger so far this year.
Despite generally peaceful relations between Christians and Muslims in Niger, suspected jihadist groups have previously been blamed for attacks on churches in the western Tillaberi region between 2018 and 2021.
The same region also reportedly witnessed the killing of 111 Muslim worshippers earlier in 2025.