NIAMEY, Niger (AP) — Armed men attacked a Nigerien Air Force base in the capital city overnight into Thursday morning, resulting in loud explosions and heavy gunfire, the state broadcaster said late Thursday.

The motorcycle-riding gunmen invaded the air base within the premises of the Diori Hamani International Airport but were repelled by security forces, Niger’s state television said, in the latest cycle of violence in the conflict-hit country.

Four soldiers were injured in the attack while 20 of the attackers were killed and 11 others arrested following a quick response from air and on land, the state television said. It said most of the arrested attackers were injured.

Videos that appear to be from the scene captured loud blasts and the sky glowing following explosions that began around midnight and lasted about two hours in the area of Diori Hamani International Airport.

Residents and analysts had told The Associated Press that the incident was suspected to be an attack by armed groups.

The attackers were likely targeting drones at the Air Force base, according to Ulf Laessing, head of the Sahel program at Germany’s Konrad Adenauer Foundation. Niger recently acquired several Turkish drones to boost its fight against jihadi militants, according to local media.

“Drones have become a game changer for both sides — army and jihadists — so the attackers wanted to eliminate the latest Turkish arms deliveries,” said Laessing.

West African airline Air Côte d’Ivoire said one of its aircraft, parked on the tarmac of the Niamey airport, was hit during the gunfire, resulting in impacts to the aircraft’s fuselage and right wing. In a statement on Facebook, it shared photos that appear to show damage caused by bullets and said the incident could lead to adjustments to its flight schedule.

By Thursday morning, calm had returned to the city and there was heavy security presence along major roads leading to the airport.

Niger has struggled to contain deadly jihadi violence that has battered parts of Africa’s Sahel region, where neighboring Burkina Faso and Mali also are run by military juntas.

In 2025, al-Qaida and Islamic State group-backed militants escalated their campaigns in the Sahel, further threatening the stability of the fragile region and of Niger, which was the key security ally of the West in the region until the 2023 coup.

Under the military junta, however, the country has seen a surge in attacks in different regions and has become more vulnerable to the armed groups, experts say.