The U.N. refugee agency reports more than 1,000 people have fled a site in western Niger following an attack by unidentified armed men on Sunday.
The group — a mix of Malian refugees, displaced and local Niger nationals — has arrived in the town of Telemces, some 27 kilometers away.
The attack, which occurred about 70 kilometers from the Malian border, left two Malian refugee leaders and a local host community leader dead.
The agency said there has been a sharp increase in attacks in the past few months in the Liptako Gourma region where the borders of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger intersect.
UNHCR spokesman Andrej Mahecic told VOA armed groups operating in the area are deliberately targeting local communities to drive people further inland in Niger.
