What is "assamakka"

Assamakka is small desert town in northern Niger at a main border crossing with Algeria. It is the only official crossing point between the two nations. Assamakka shares the border with the larger town of In Guezzam 10 km on the Algerian side. A main road extends north in Algeria to Tamanrasset, 400 km away. Assamakka is connected to the town of Arlit, 200 km to the south by a road which remains in largely a sand " Piste". From Arlit, the "Uranium Highway", a tarred road built in the 1970s for mining trucks, travels south to Agadez and Niamey.