NIAMEY
Boko Haram militants on Friday attacked the Nigerien town of Bosso on the border with Nigeria in the militant group's first such attack in Niger, a Nigerien military source has said.
"[This attack] should raise the alarm for the government and people of Niger," the source, requesting anonymity, told The Anadolu Agency.
No information is yet available about casualties.
Nigerien state television, however, said the attack had caused "heavy damage."
Friday's attack comes three days before a planned parliamentary session convened to discuss proposals for deploying Nigerien troops to neighboring Nigeria to fight alongside a regional anti-Boko Haram coalition.
For the last five years, Nigeria has battled a fierce Boko Haram insurgency that has ravaged the country's volatile northeast and claimed thousands of lives.
In recent months, the militant group has stepped up attacks on Nigeria's border area with neighboring Cameroon.
Cameroon and Chad have both recently deployed troops to fight Boko Haram militants on the border with Nigeria.
