COTONOU, Benin—An attack by unidentified armed persons in the north of the small West African nation of Benin has killed “about 15 people,” according to the government’s spokesperson.
Spokesperson Wilfried Houngbedji told AP by telephone Thursday that the attack on a farm in the commune of Kerou, some 600 kilometers (370miles) north of Benin’s largest city Cotonou, began on Monday night.
Local media reported that several other people were abducted by the attackers.
Over the past three years, Benin and neighboring Togo have suffered multiple deadly extremist attacks, with an increased risk of violence from al-Qaeda and ISIS-linked terrorist groups spreading further south from Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso….