It is not clear why the release of the video – on an IS outlet on messaging app Telegram – was delayed until now.

The video consists mainly of raw footage, including images apparently filmed using a helmet camera belonging to one of the soldiers.

The video seems to suggest that the attack was carried out by IS militants.

It begins with still images showing an alleged pledge of allegiance to IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi by members of the al-Qaeda-linked, Sahel-based group Jamaat Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM).

The alleged pledge was reported last month by a number of analysts but it had not been promoted by IS outlets on Telegram.

The deaths later caused controversy when the widow of one of the soldiers said President Donald Trump had made her cry during a condolence phone call by suggesting her husband “knew what he signed up for”.

The video shows several armed militants walking and running in a desert area apparently heading for the ambush, reports BBC Monitoring.

It then shows footage that appears to have been filmed by one of the US soldiers. At one point the footage shows US soldiers seemingly exchanging fire with their assailants.

One soldier is then shown apparently dead.

Fighting continues until the other soldiers are killed, including apparently the one who was filming.

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Source: BBC

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Several Nigerien soldiers are also said to have died in the attack.

US Africa Command said the patrol had come under “hostile fire” and was working to confirm the details.

The US army has been providing training to Niger’s army to help combat Islamist militants in the region, including the North African branch of al-Qaeda.

US President Donald Trump has been briefed by his chief-of-staff, John Kelly, about the attack, White House spokesperson Sarah Sanders said.

According to the New York Times, quoting a military official, three Army Green Berets – US army special forces – were killed in the ambush which took place 120 miles (193km) north of Niamey, the capital of Niger.

The paper said they were the first American casualties to die from hostile fire since the US Africa Command deployed in Niger.

Two wounded US soldiers are in stable condition and will be flown to Germany for treatment, CNN reports.

An official from Niger’s Tillaberi region told Reuters that five Nigerien soldiers were among the dead.

Officials were unable to say who fired on the soldiers.

Militants belonging to al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) – an affiliate of al-Qaeda – are active in the region and are known to have conducted cross-border raids.

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Source: BBC

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The Foundation also seeks to provide a platform for the young emerging Ghanaian and African broadcast journalists, to help influence and shape policies within their countries with a view to enhancing the interests of their peoples.

At the well-attended launching of the foundation at the UN Church Centre on Friday were members of the diplomatic corps, media men, friends of Komla Dumor and representatives of some Ghanaian Associations in the United States of America.

Ambassador Ken Kanda, Ghana’s Permanent Representative to the UN, described the late Dumor, former presenter for BBC World News and its Focus on Africa programme, who died on January 18, this year, as someone who was imbibed with passion and the determination to excel in all he did.

“The celebration of his life should send signals to young Africans and black people that passion, commitment and dedication bring desired achievements,” he said of Dumor, one of Ghana’s best-known journalists, who joined the BBC as a radio broadcaster in 2006 after a decade of journalism in Ghana.

Ambassador Kanda said Dumor who became the face of Africa on BBC, did well to the extent that he became “the respectability that Africa has been searching for,” adding that “Komla showed that the Black Man has also arrived and has the capacity for greater achievements.”

Ambassador Kanda, current chair of the ECOWAS group at the UN, charged Africans to prove in whatever field they find themselves, that “Black people are capable of achieving greater things by always doing our best as exemplified by Komla.”

Prof. Ernest Dumor, father of the late Dumor, described his son’s death as a blessing, having in his lifespan helped to re-write the history of the African.

In his words, “Komla, re-crafted the identity issue of Africa as the new frontier.”

He explained that the Foundation was established to support and push the Africa agenda forward, and to foster interactive social discussions, and promote education for mainly disadvantaged schools in rural areas.

“We need to get a database, a register to unlock the growth potential of Africa,” Prof. Dumor stated, emphasizing that this was what Komla stood for.

Gringo Wotshela, a BBC correspondent in Washington, who was at the event, lauded Komla’s achievements as a determined broadcaster who wanted the best for Africa. He was able to touch the lives of a lot of people through his work, he was way too advanced,” Gringo said of his late professional colleague.

Dr. Koshie Dumor, a medical officer, said his late senior brother believed that the borders in Africa were imaginary, and always wanted a vibrant and energetic African youth.

To cap the event, there was a video clip on one of Komla’s interviews during which he hammered the point that there were a lot of good things about Africa, but there should be a balance in the way it was reported.

Komla Dumor died at his home in London at the age of 41.

On hearing of Komla’s death, Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama said on Twitter that his country had lost one of its finest ambassadors.

Source: GNA

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