The U.S. Drone War In Africa Is About To Escalate

A French soldier of the regional anti-insurgent Operation Barkhane stands in front of a General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper drone version Block 1 in Niamey, Niger. Benoit Tessier/Reuters

Lara Seligman, Foreign Policy: The US is fighting a drone war in Africa that many don't know about — and it's about to get bigger

* Last November, the government of Niger requested that the United States begin deploying armed drones against jihadi groups in Tongo Tongo.
* While the US has deployed drones to North Africa in the past, they have only been used for intelligence gathering.
* In order to meet Niger's request, the US Air Force will build new facilities in Agadez for nearly $100 million.

The US military will begin flying armed drones out of a remote base in Niger in the coming months, marking a significant escalation of the Defense Department's little-noticed war against violent extremists in Africa.

The MQ-9 Reapers will operate from new facilities the US Air Force is building at an existing Nigerien base in Agadez for nearly $100 million. Until recently, the drones have been based in Niger's capital and used solely to collect intelligence on militant groups operating in the region.

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WNU Editor: Boko Haram to the south. Mali extremists to the west. Turmoil in Libya to the north. This U.S. drone base is right in the middle of it.