1 June 2013 Last updated at 12:10 ET
Gunmen have attacked a prison in the centre of Niger's capital, Niamey, officials and witnesses say.
Justice Minister Marou Amadou told the AFP news agency that at least two guards had been killed.
Some of the gunmen are reported to have entered the prison, which has been surrounded by the security forces.
The attack comes days after suicide bombings at a military base in Agadez and a French-operated uranium mine at Arlit killed more than 20 people.
The al-Qaeda-affiliated Signed-in-Blood Battalion said its leader, Algerian militant Mokhtar Belmokhtar, had masterminded the assaults.
They were carried out in co-ordination with another group, the Movement for Unity and Jihad in West Africa (Mujao), the group claimed.
02 Jun, 2013
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Source: http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=t&fd=R&usg=AFQjCNG18QLasmMLRlri0wetUKjkoTYDqA&url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-22742652
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