Junta leaders in Niger ignored a deadline set by the Economic Community of West African States to release the country’s captive president and return him to power.
The 15-country union set the August 6 deadline on the heels of the military coup that deposed the nation’s democratically elected leader Mohamed Bazoum.
The pro-West Bazoum, who was elected in 2021, was deposed by members of Niger’s elite presidential guard led by Gen. Omar Tchiani. Before being ousted, Bazoum was considering removing Tchiani from his post, which may have encouraged the coup, per The Wall Street Journal.
As the deadline passed, Nigeria, the region’s wealthiest and most populous country, showed no signs that it was preparing to enforce the ultimatum on its neighbor, according to the WSJ. Nigeria’s president Bola Tinubu is an advocate for military intervention, but his own nation’s regional fissures complicate any foray into Niger.
Tinubu is from southern Nigeria, but the northern part of the country, which is culturally similar to Niger and has a significant presence in the Nigerian army, is resistant to interceding militarily to remove the junta, as reported by the WSJ.
Mali and Burkina Faso, two of Niger’s neighbors and Economic Community of West African States member states, support the junta and have said they would defend it against any external intervention, as reported by the WSJ.
On Sunday, coup supporters filled the country’s biggest stadium in a demonstration of support, and the military junta’s spokesman, Amadou Abdramane, announced that due to “the threat of intervention being prepared in a neighboring country,” Niger’s airspace was closed until further notice.
Niger has received roughly $500 million in U.S. arms and military aid to fight al Qaeda and Islamic State militants in the Sahel region of Africa, as reported by the WSJ. The U.S. has about 1,100 military personnel in the country, while France has around 1,500. The coup leaders appear to be severing many of the country’s ties with the West, as they have already said they would end military cooperation with France.
Last Thursday, The Washington Post ran an op-ed by the ousted president of the Republic of Niger in which he said he was a hostage and asked for the U.S. to intervene and remove the coup leaders from power.
“In our hour of need, I call on the U.S. government and the entire international community to help us restore our constitutional order.”
As of Sunday, Bazoum remains captive in his residence without food or water, according to The New York Times. Bazoum had been using his cell phone to communicate, but coup leaders disabled his cell phone on Saturday to put a stop to this.
U.S. officials have called on the junta to free Bazoum and restore the nation’s democracy. However, U.S. officials have resisted calling the military’s actions a coup, as such a designation would bar military aid under U.S. law, per the WSJ.
At the same time, the WSJ reported that Niger might be drawing closer to Russia, possibly by engaging Wagner mercenaries as allies. Pro-coup demonstrators in the country’s capital city Niamey have been seen waving the Russian flag, as reported by AP.
Russia has warned against armed intervention in Niger and has called for a return to constitutional order, per the WSJ.
Tchiani and the other coup members have justified the coup as necessary to address security within Niger, the WSJ reported. However, attacks on civilians in the first half of 2023 were down by almost half compared to the previous six months.
