An Australian Special Operations Task Group soldier takes aim during a battle with Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan. Picture: Australian Defence Image Library

Aus­tralian special forces took part in a three-week training stint in Niger, US military confirmed to The Australian.

The training exercises, dubbed Flintlock, took place in late February at a military camp at Diffa, a town in Niger’s southeast near the border with Nigeria and in a region under threat from the terrorist group.

Troops lead 82 girls released by Boko Haram to a waiting helicopter. Picture: ICRCSource:Supplied

Boko Haram fighters armed with rocket-propelled grenades, mortars and machine guns last month attacked a village about 30km from Diffa. Niger troops fought back, killing 57 of the militants. In total 15 soldiers and two civilians were also wounded in the battle.

A coalition of African military forces has been attempting to fight Boko Haram, notorious for its kidnapping of nearly 300 schoolgirls.

The Defence Department had avoided an official announcement about the Diggers presence in Niger until questioned by The Australian yesterday, the paper reported. This is despite the US and Canada making public statements about their own soldiers’ role.

A Nigerian army vehicle patrols in the town of Banki in northeastern Nigeria. Picture: AFPSource:AFP

A Defence Department spokesman said it was the second time Australian troops had taken part in the Flintlock exercises.

He described it as being “part of our regular international training engagements”.

“Such engagements allow the participants to broaden their professional experience and knowledge,’’ he said.

Boko Haram are trying to carve out an Islamic state around the Lake Chad region where ­Nigeria, Cameroon, Niger and Chad meet.

A video grab showing Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau making a statement at an undisclosed location. Picture: AFPSource:AFP

The group, whose name ­loosely translates as “Western education is forbidden”, origin­ated out of a Sunni Islamic fundamentalist sect established in Nigeria more than a decade ago.

In 2010, the group made international headlines with the kidnapping of 276 girls from Chibok, a town in Nigeria’s northeast. Boko Haram this month released 82 of the kidnapped girls.

The full version of this story was published by The Australian