Militant video reveals Niger's Chinese arms

[Zarvan]

A still from a video released by Wilayat Gharb Ifriqiyyah on 5 July shows a WZ551 APC in the aftermath of the group's attack on the Nigerien base at Bosso on 3 June. Source: Wilayat Gharb Ifriqiyyah
A video released by Wilayat Gharb Ifriqiyyah (the current name of the group popularly known as Boko Haram) on 5 July revealed that Niger's military is operating NORINCO WZ551 armoured personnel carriers (APCs).

The video showed the group's 3 June attack on the Nigerien military base at Bosso, close to the Nigerian border. The Nigerien Ministry of Defence said the following day that 30 of its soldiers and two from Nigeria were killed in the attack and another 67 people wounded.

The footage showed that the base was defended by at least one WZ551, a type that was not previously known to be in Nigerien service. The base was also defended by a 122 mm D-30 howitzer (a version that is made by China) and several pick-ups armed with 14.5 mm and 12.7 mm machine guns.

The weapons recovered by the militants included 12.7 mm NORINCO Type 77 heavy machine guns and 35 mm QLZ-87 automatic grenade launchers, as well as RPD light machine guns and MP5 submachine guns (copies of both have been made in China).

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