Explosion has rocked the Diori Hamani International Airport, Niamey, Niger Republic, in the early hours of Saturday.

The attack was confirmed by a deputy in the Alliance of Sahel States, Bana Wagana Ibrahim, in a Facebook post on Saturday.

Mr Ibrahim wrote, “Another cowardly attack against base 101 and once again our defense and security forces have ensured. Situation under control.”

According to Reuters, state television and radio went offline at 8: a.m with the government in a statement urging calm and mobilising security forces to the scene.

A researcher who focuses on Africa, Hasret Kargın, posted a video of soldiers deployed to douse down the situation of the attack in Niamey.

“Following the deployment of a large number of troops to the clashes in Niamey, the situation is claimed under control.There is currently no information on whether the attack was carried out by jihadists or was an attempted coup.

“Given the recent attacks, rebel groups could also be added to the list of possibilities. Unlike the previous airport attacks, the fact that there are still no images of the attackers also shows the seriousness of the situation,” he wrote.