Benin - April 2025

On 17 April, al-Qaeda-linked Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) claimed responsibility for an ambush on military posts in W National Park, near the borders with Burkina Faso and Niger. The group said it had killed 70 soldiers, while government spokesperson Wilfried Léandre Houngbédji confirmed 54 deaths at a press briefing on 23 April. Authorities had initially reported eight fatalities. The attack is the deadliest on Benin’s armed forces to date and follows another JNIM-claimed assault in January in the Alibori department that killed 28 soldiers. Based in Mali, JNIM has expanded its operations into neighbouring states, fuelling Benin’s escalating security crisis, which increasingly threatens both military and civilian populations.  

Sources: Le Monde, British Broadcasting Corporation, La Nation, International IDEA