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NIAMEY, Niger: A French military convoy heading to Mali on Saturday (Sunday in Manila) ran into more trouble in a town in Niger after being delayed for more than a week by protests in Burkina Faso, with the local mayor reporting three deaths and 18 wounded. The supply convoy, which arrived in Africa in the Ivory Coast last week, has crossed Burkina Faso and on Friday entered Niger on its way to central Mali. Its destination is a base at Gao — a hub of France’s Barkhane operation, which is shoring up allies in the Sahel against a jihadist insurgency that began in northern Mali nearly a decade ago. But clashes reportedly broke out at Tera in western Niger on Saturday, which the mayor said left “three people dead and 18 wounded” including four who had to be evacuated for treatment in the capital Niamey, 200 kilometers (120 miles) away. The French army said it was in contact with the Nigerien authorities, but was “not in a position to confirm this toll at this stage.”
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