US: 20-year-old programme scrapped after Niger deaths

Boston University has cancelled its study abroad programme in Niger because of the recent abduction and slaying of two Frenchmen, writes Matt Rocheleau for The Boston Globe.

Fifteen students had been scheduled to travel to the former French colony this month for the spring semester programme. The university has sent around a dozen students to the African nation each autumn and spring semester since the programme began 20 years ago, said campus spokesman Colin Riley. It had also sought to launch its first summer programme there this year, but those plans have been cancelled "for the foreseeable future," Riley said.

Al Qaeda claimed responsibility for the abduction of the two 25-year-old Frenchmen, who were seized at gunpoint on 7 January while eating dinner at Le Toulousain restaurant. The open-air eatery was popular with Boston University students. The two men were killed as French soldiers closed in on the kidnappers, according to wire service reports.
Full report on the Boston.com site