Gen. Ibra Boulama Issa

At least 49 people died of thirst after a truck broke down in the Sahara Desert in northern Niger, stranding passengers returning from a religious festival in Mali. Two survivors reached a water source and alerted authorities, but the cause of the breakdown remains unclear.

At least 49 people died of thirst after a truck broke down and stranded them in the Sahara Desert in northern Niger. The victims, returning from a religious festival in Mali, were near the borders of Mali and Algeria when the vehicle failed. Two survivors reached a water source and alerted authorities.