Niger apprehends two IS-GS leaders near Burkina Faso’s border

Nigeriens armed forces have arrested two senior members of Islamic State in the Greater Sahara (IS-GS) near the border with neighboring Burkina Faso, reports say.
The militants are Abou Maryam aka +Zaïd+ and Sita Ousseini aka Loukoumane. Both, media note citing a Nigerien security source, have been on a wanted list.
+Zaid+ was arrested on July 6 near the town Yatakala, in the Tillabéri Region in the far northwest of the country.
Loukoumane on the other hand was arrested the following day, July 7 near the town of Tera also in the Tillabéri Region in the far northwest of the country, near the Burkina Faso border.
The two men, members of the terror group, are also wanted in Burkina Faso for participation or complicity in planning or carrying out terrorist acts. Both countries are struggling to contain terrorist activities in their territories. Aside from IS-GS, Niger is also fighting Nigeria-based Boko Haram, Islamic State’s West Africa Province and bandit groups.