The kidnapped man is a pilot for an evangelical organisation, a diplomatic supply says.
Printed On 22 Oct 2025
A US missionary working for an evangelical Christian organisation has been kidnapped in Niger’s capital Niamey, the US State Division has mentioned, within the newest kidnapping of a international nationwide within the nation.
The US State Division confirmed the kidnapping to the AFP information company on Wednesday, saying its embassy in Niamey was doing what it may to safe the person’s protected launch.
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The sufferer, a person in his 50s, was seized on Tuesday night time and was “already en route for the border with Mali”, a diplomatic supply instructed AFP.
The Reuters information company, citing one other diplomat talking on situation of anonymity, mentioned the person was a pilot for the evangelical organisation Serving in Mission (SIM).
SIM describes itself on its web site as a “world mission household of greater than 4,000 individuals, serving in additional than 70 international locations”, whose focus is on “taking the gospel to locations the place there are not any, or only a few, Christians”.
The diplomat mentioned the sufferer was kidnapped by three unidentified males in Niamey’s Plateau neighbourhood as he was heading for the airport. The group then headed for Niger’s western Tillaberi area, the place armed fighters linked to ISIL (ISIS) and al-Qaeda are recognized to function.
In a publish on X, Wamaps, a collective of journalists in West Africa, mentioned the kidnapped man had been working in Niger since 2010, and had been kidnapped just some streets away from the presidential palace in central Niamey. It mentioned no group had but claimed accountability for the kidnapping or claimed a ransom.
String of kidnappings
The kidnapping is the most recent in a spate of kidnappings this 12 months in Niger, a rustic that has been battling armed teams linked to al-Qaeda and ISIL for years. Safety threats ramped up after the army toppled the nation’s democratically elected authorities in July 2023.
In April, 67-year-old Swiss lady Claudia Abbt was kidnapped within the northern city of Agadez, three months after the abduction of Austrian Eva Gretzmacher, 73, in the identical metropolis. Neither has been launched.
ISIL was thought of accountable for the kidnappings, carried out by native legal teams on its behalf, AFP reported, citing observers of armed teams within the area.
In line with Wamaps, different abductions of international nationals this 12 months have included 4 Moroccan truck drivers in January, two Chinese language petroleum firm staff in February, and 5 Indian energy firm technicians in April.
Niger is one among a number of West African international locations battling armed battle that has spread from Mali and Burkina Faso over the previous 12 years, killing hundreds of individuals and uprooting tens of millions.
Following Niger’s 2023 army coup, US and French forces that had been concerned within the battle in opposition to armed violence within the area have been expelled from Niger, because the nation turned to Russian mercenaries in an effort to take care of stability.
In Might, Common Michael Langley, the previous head of the US Africa Command, mentioned that the withdrawal had eliminated the US army’s “skill to watch these terrorist teams carefully, however [we] proceed to liaison with companions to offer what assist we will”.
