Niger president urges country not to be cowed by Boko Haram
The country's parliament has also voted to contribute troops
Niamey: Niger President Mahamadou Issoufou on Wednesday urged the nation to stand up to Boko Haram Islamists from Nigeria who have launched repeated cross-border attacks in recent days.
"Our country will not go down in history as having been cowed by an enemy that wants to cover our country in darkness," Issoufou said in a speech broadcast on national radio, urging Nigeriens to support the country's security forces in their battle against the militants.
Niamey on Tuesday imposed a state of emergency in the Diffa region along the border with Nigeria over the Boko Haram violence. The country's parliament has also voted to contribute troops to a regional force to combat the militants.
"The people must support the defence and security forces, especially by signing up," Issoufou said.
Calling for a "general mobilisation" he urged the country's youth not to fall for "the siren call" of Boko Haram propaganda.
In the latest bout of unrest on Wednesday, a suicide bomber was killed, without causing any other casualties, in the Diffa region, a local official told AFP.
Nigeria and its neighboursm Niger, Chad, Cameroon and Benin have agreed to muster 8,700 troops, police and civilians for a wider, African Union-backed force against Boko Haram. The Boko Haram conflict has killed more than 13,000 people in Nigeria and beyond since 2009.