US soldiers killed in ambush in Isil African stronghold

THREE US Green Berets and an unknown number of Nigerian soldiers were killed in a clash on the Niger-mali border, where Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (Isil) fighters have established a presence.

The soldiers died when a joint Usniger patrol was ambushed on Wednesday in the Tillaberi region in the country’s southwest. French Mirage 2000 fighter jets were called in for air support.

Mahamadou Issoufou, Niger’s president, said there were many casualties in the battle while US Africa Command said two more Special Forces troops were wounded.

Another person from an unnamed country was also killed, according to the Pentagon, which did not specifically mention Nigerian casualties. The report confirmed the little-known presence of US troops in the turbulent area, part of the poor and politically fragile Sahel region where jihadist groups are mounting an insurgency.

A French military spokesman said its helicopters had evacuated the wounded from the scene and added that the fighting was continuing.