With Niger exit, US intelligence dims on growing West Africa insurgencies
AS the U.S. military packs up what is left of its equipment and counter-terrorism personnel in Niger, American officials are warning it is becoming increasingly difficult to monitor growing West African insurgencies. Niger's military rulers have given the U.S. until Sept. 15 to remove its troops from the country, which also means leaving a $100 million drone base near Agadez in central Niger that had provided a crucial source of intelligence about groups allied to al Qaeda and Islamic State. "Our ability to monitor the threat is degraded because of the loss of Agadez," one U.S. official told Reuters in…