In 2010, we were working for AREVA, a government french mining company located at Imouraren in the desert of Niger. One day before work, we found the door of one of our coworker broken and opened early in the morning. He was kidnapped by the terrorist group Alkmi Boko Aram. We were panicked because the security alert was maximal. We were infiltrated and we didn't know who were the next to be kidnapped. After talking with the Nigerien's authorities, the high management of the company, decided to repatriate everyone in his home country. We have two choices to make about the way to use in other to go back home safely,to[[take the airplane]] or to [[take the road]].
The speed way to move from Imouraren to Niamey, Nigerien's capital, which has the international airport. Areva had its personal personnal jet that was moving overseas worker from Niamey to Imouraren where was the mining.In fact [[the airplane was the safely way]] but something happened,[[the weather was not good]],so couldn't take a planewe couldn't stay there for only one more day because of our safety. We decided to take the road. We drove for eight hours from Imouraren to Arlit. It was not a recommended path instead of airplane, but we have chosen it and we[[arrived at Arlit]] the second big town of Niger. Even we were attacked, we couldn't fly with the airplane, we were supposed to wait for some days before to travel because of bad weather. It was blown a lot in the desert. Flying could be worst, so the best choice was[[take the road]] The most safe way to fly was to take an airplane. We couldn't be surprised by the terrorist in the air. We had our jet, the company's jet. That jet used to pick us from Niamey to Imouraren where were located our workplace, Imouraren mining. The best choice at the moment was to[[take the road]] The path was so long, everybody was anxious, at the moment we had one thing in our mind, arrived at the destination. Finally, when we arrived at Arlit which was half of to total distance of traveling, we stopped and thought about the second half. We had to choose between [[continue traveling to Niamey]] or to[[ wait for the good weather]] We decided to stay and wait at Arlit for two days before the good weather in order to take the airplane, our jet. Because of that decision, we had another problem: where to live? We had to chose between [[stay at the hotel]] or [[to hide in a safe place]] staying at the hotel was comfortable for us after eight hours of travel. But the other side, it was unsafe because it was a [[public place place]]. Several strangers attempted places like that.After chose to hide in a safe place, a nonpublic place, we started thinking about the most secure place to stay during the two days before flying. Our Nigerien driver said that he could give us a place to sleep in his house. He was generous enough, but for safety reasons, some of my colleagues didn't agree with him. They preferred a secret place or a rental apartment. We had to choose between [[ rent a secret house]] and [[staying in ours coworker house]]The decision was made, the security department of Areva our company and the Nigerien government agreed that we need soldiers for our protection. We rent an apartment and hid there for two days until the weather became stable. The government gave us about fifteen soldiers for our security. The day after we took our jet and we [[flyed to niamey]]the Niger's capital.The proposition to stay at our coworker house was good, but we thought about two things. The first thing was [[the trust]]to our coworker. We didn't know if he was a spy or not. The second thing was the [[housing condition]]. We were twenty-five people, we were not sure that he could have a big house with the required condition for everybody.The trust in our coworker was a very important point. We needed safety at that time. We had also information about how the terrorists choose their victims. The purpose of kidnapping was money. They used to ask for many millions of dollars to the government of their victims. They had spies everywhere. Their spies used to give them all information about strangers. So we didn't know if our coworker was a spy or not. For safety, the best choice was [[to hide in a safe place]] Even if our coworker was not a spy, we were twenty-five people in the bus. He couldn't have a big house for all of us with all the required sanitary. Arlit was also a small town, almost a village and the population was poor. The diver was one of the least paid of the company, he couldn't have enough money to afford a comfortable house. We decided to [[to hide in a safe place]] Early in the morning of the second day, everybody was ready for the trip. Most of us didn't sleep that night because we were scared. We had soldiers in front of our house but one thing was sure, the terrorists had sophisticated weapons. It would be worse if they found us and decided to attack us. We had two long days. The weather was good when our plane finally took off. Because of the two days lost because of weather, we [[lost airplane]] to Congo when we arrived at NiameyWe spent eight hours in the way instead of five. The road was so bad because of the sand in the desert of Sahara. The vision was greatly reduced because the sang was carried by the wind. The driver couldn't see five feet in front of him. In addition, the road was not safe at all. There was a[[risk of kidnapping]]. Continue traveling was a bad idea.We took a huge risk to travel in the desert; We knew that we could be attacked on the road and also kidnapped, but we chose between staying at Imouraren where we could be attacked by terrorists and live in a secure place. Live was the best idea. We were escorted by the Nigerien's army. We knew that we risked our lives. Continuing to Niamey could be a high risk, so we decided to[[ wait for the good weather]] It was visible that we were foreigners and someone could betray us by denouncing us to the terrorist. we had to think outside the box and decide what to do. Nobody wanted to be kidnapped. According to the information that has the intelligence service, there was [[Nigerien traitors]] everywhere Arrived at Niamey, we lost the airplane from Niamey to Kinshasa. Askay was the traveling Togolese company, that had a direct fly once a week. It has already gone. To go back home, we had two possibilities, [[waiting the regular plane for five days]] or [[Change trip destination]]We were in a situation which needed a quick solution. We had a choice to stay or to find another possibility to move. But nobody wanted to stay again in Niger for a simple reason, the [[high cost of Hotel]]and also the [[stress]]We lost the plane and our HR Djibrila Mossi decided to talk to Icare Travel, the travel agency, to convince them to find us tickets for another destination, even if it was not a direct destination from Niamey to Kinshasa. Fortunately for us, we had two different possibilities. The first was to [[take a plane the same evening via Maroc]]and the second to [[take a plane the evening after via senegal]]The price per night was about one hundred fifty dollars without food at Tenere Hotel, the most secure and the four-star hotel in Niamey. Staying there for five days was expensive for twenty-five people, so we decided to[[take a plane the same evening via Maroc]] Even if we could afford hotel expenses and decided to stay there for five days and wait for the next plane, we couldn't forget the painfull trip we did. All of us were stressed and had one thing in our mind: back home and stay with our families. We were stressed and thought that one of us could be kidnaped. So the best choice was to [[take a plane the same evening via Maroc]] The trip from to Kinshasa via Maroc was long. Flying from Niamey to Casablanca was not far at all, but the time to wait for the airplane which would take us to Kinshasa was too long, it was about six houses at the airport. But on the other side we were relieved. We looked at each other and we were almost crying. I was thinking about my daughter who was born only three days before I traveled for Niger. We thought about Jean Bertrand, the Alcaida's hostage. I was sad, because he was talking every day about his family. He loved them. It was a bad experience but finally we went [[Back home]] The evening after the Senegalese company Air Senegal had a flight to Kinshasa via Dakar. It was a short flight. It could take us a few times to fly because it was almost a direct flight. But as I said, our wish was to leave the soon as possible. That why our choice was to [[take a plane the same evening via Maroc]] Most of Nigerien's people believed that they are poor because of white people. They think that white people still their wealth and the only way to allow them to leave their ore, is to attack them. Their government don't agree with them and arrest them. They hid in the desert but they have traitors everywhere who give them information about foreigners, especially those who worked for strangers mining companies in their country. We knew it but we couldn't know who was a spy and who was not. Staying in public place could be the worst idea, so we decided [[to hide in a safe place]]