Tongo Tongo is a village in the rural commune of Tondikiwindi, Ouallam Department, Tillabéri Region in southwestern Niger, 174 km north of the nation's capital Niamey and 28 km south of the border with Mali. The village has about 160-170 huts/dwellings, irregularly clustered. There are no roads, just trails that connect to nearby villages such as Siwili, Firo, Sabara Bangou, Sinka Koira, Gollo, Gouré Tonndi, Kokorobé Koukou and Zerma Daré. The population of the commune consists for 99% of the Zarma people. Most of them own cattle, sheep, goats and dromedaries, renting them out to the Fulani people or Tuareg people for tending. Though arable land is rare and poor, there is also some agriculture, mostly millet and sorghum. The area is part of the Sahel and consists of a vast expanse of plateaux and hills. The physical environment is in an advanced state of degradation caused by habitat destruction, poaching, and by the viccisitudes of the local climate. Tongo Tongo should not be confused with the village Tongo-Tongo in neighbouring Mali.
Armed conflict
In March 2017 the Nigerien government declared a state of emergency in the Ouallam Department because of the spill-over from the war in nearby Mali, where large areas are under the control of jihadist groups linked to Al-Qaeda. As of fall 2017, many western nations advise against all travel in the Ouallam Department. The U.S. military has been operating in that area with local forces to help them fight terrorism and to disrupt the militants' movements. On 4 October 2017 a 11-man team of U.S. soldiers from the Army's 3rd Special Forces Group was operating with approximately 35 Forces Armees Nigeriennes on a train and advise mission near Tongo Tongo. Militants, both Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb and ISIS, had been using a nearby route to travel back and forth into Mali and back to a base camp in Niger and traffic in black market merchandise. The Nigerien forces were working to disrupt this so-called rat line and interdict the militants. While scouting the route, the group came under attack from more than 50 enemy fighters, riding in a dozen vehicles and on about 20 motorcycles, firing from numerous directions with small arms. Four Army Special Forces soldiers, five Nigerien soldiers and at least 21 ISGS militants were killed in the ambush. A further eight Nigerien and two US soldiers were wounded. Initially the US acknowledged only three killed, as the fourth soldier initially was missing; his body was found two days later at the location of the incident. US Africa Command communicated that the soldiers killed were Staff Sergeants Bryan Black of Puyallup, Washington, Jeremiah Johnson of Springboro, Ohio, Dustin Wright of Lyons, Georgia, and Sgt. La David Johnson of Miami Gardens, Florida. No group has taken responsibility for the killings, although officials commented that the US suspected a local branch of Islamic State was responsible, but without publicly naming any group. At the time and location of the ambush threats were deemed unlikely, so there was no overhead armed air cover during the engagement. US Africa Command acknowledged the loss of elite US forces would trigger a review of how the US military carries out operations but did not suggest any move to scale back the American mission in Niger. On December 27 2018 the French Air Force assisted by Nigerien ground forces conducted a raid near the village killing 15 terrorists and destroying 20 motorcycles.
Climate
Tongo Tongo has a desert climate. From October to April there is virtually no rainfall. According to Köppen and Geiger, this climate is classified as BWh. The average annual temperature is 29.4 °C. Average annual precipitation is about 250 mm; most of it falls in August, about 104 mm. May is the warmest month of the year; with a 24h temperature average of 33.9 °C and a daily average maximum of almost 41 °C. January is the coldest month, on average 23.9 °C.
