3 US Special Forces troops killed, 2 wounded after ambush in Niger

SOCFWD-NWA Public Affairs

Three US Army Special Forces troops were killed and two were wounded while conducting a patrol with Niger troops in southwest Niger on Wednesday, The New York Times reported.

The wounded Green Berets were reportedly in "stable condition" and evacuated to Niamey, the country's capital, where they will then be transported to Germany.

The joint patrol, conducted to train Niger troops, was considered routine, according to US military officials who also said that eight to ten US troops were part of the patrol, Fox News reported.

Five Nigerien soldiers were also killed, according to an official for the region of Tillaberi, Niger.

"We can confirm reports that a joint US and Nigerien patrol came under hostile fire in southwest Niger," a spokesman for US Africa Command said. The US military has had a presence in the volatile region for several years.

A source in the Special Operations community said that the US troops were part of 3rd Special Forces Group, a military detachment that has shifted its area of operations to Africa in recent years, according to SOFREP. The source also said there were around 40 enemy combatants during the time of the ambush.

In 2013, the US set up a drone base in Niger to combat extremist organizations in West Africa, including the Islamic Stte, Boko Haram, and an affiliate of Al Qaeda.

NOW WATCH: Watch Lockheed Martin's laser beam system burn drones out of the sky