The Islamic State and JNIM, an Al-Qaeda affiliate, have clashed in Niger for the first time. The two jihadist groups are now competing for resources and recruits in a new border region between Niger, Nigeria, and Benin.

For the first time, the Islamic State Al-Qaeda affiliate JNIM have clashed in West Africa’s Niger. While previous confrontations between the two jihadist groups had taken place in the tri-border area with Mali and Burkina Faso, they are now spreading toward a new border region between Niger, Nigeria, and Benin, in what France 24’s Wassim Nasr describes as a “race to the border” as the two groups vie for resources and recruits.