Tension in the Sahel: West African countries activate military force to restore order in Niger

Bobo-Dioulasso (Burkina Faso)The chairman of the ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States) commission, Omar Touray, announced in a statement that ECOWAS has ordered the "immediate activation of the West African community's standby forces" and the "deployment" of these forces.to restore constitutional order in NigerThey have not specified in which territory or border they would deploy them, but these "standby forces" refer to a military force of the group of African countries that has about 2,500 soldiers from the different member states.

The heads of state attending the ECOWAS meeting met this Thursday in an extraordinary session in Abuja, the capital of Nigeria. Before the meeting began, the President of Nigeria and of ECOWAS, Bola Tinubu, read a speech in which he stated that it was "crucial to prioritize diplomatic negotiations and dialogue." However, the conclusions of the meeting and Touray's words are a belligerent response to the crisis that West Africa is experiencing after the coup in Niger on July 26.

At the first extraordinary summit, held on July 30 in Abuja, ECOWAS had already warned that it would use force in Niger if the Nigerien military junta did not release the ousted president, Mohamed Bazoum, and "restore constitutional order in the country" before Sunday the 6th. The general who has taken power in Niger, the ultimatum imposed by ECOWAS, and on that same Sunday, he announced in a statement on national television that he was closing the airspace until further notice due to "the threat of a military intervention."

"We must engage all parties involved, including the coup leaders, in serious dialogue so they relinquish power and reinstate President Bazoum," Tinubu added this afternoon from Abuja. On Monday, the military junta barred a delegation from the United Nations, the African Union, and ECOWAS from entering the country. US Deputy Secretary of State Victoria Nuland was allowed entry. who traveled to Niamey to meet with high-ranking military officials.

Bazoum, shot down and arrested

Meanwhile, the ousted president, Mohamed Bazoum, He remains under arrest and under surveillance by his own Presidential Guard.According to the US television network CNN, Bazoum can only eat "dry rice and pasta" and is without electricity with his family. This is a situation shared by most Nigeriens after Nigeria cut off electricity to the neighboring country. Another US media outlet, The Washington PostThe newspaper published a column signed by Bazoum himself in which he declared himself a "hostage." Just hours before the end of the extraordinary ECOWAS meeting, the Associated Press reported that the military junta would kill President Mohamed Bazoum if a foreign force intervened in the country.

General Tchiani has begun working on forming a new civilian government in Niger. This Thursday, the military junta released the list of candidates for the new Nigerien government. Also, in a statement read by the spokesman for the National Council for the Safeguarding of the Homeland (CNSP), Amadou Abdramane, he asserted that "French forces have unilaterally released terrorists from prison," an accusation that Paris has denied.

Meanwhile, young people in Niamey, the capital of Niger, have taken to the streets to support the coup. Rhissa Ag Bouhla, a former Nigerien minister and historical figure in the Tuareg rebellions between 1991 and 2007, has announced the creation of the Council of Resistance for the Republic (CRR) and called on the population to mobilize until Bazoum returns to power. "France has colossal interests in Niger. I believe they will intervene through ECOWAS, stirring up conflict among Nigeriens to sow chaos, force us to leave, and leave us in the mire. Look, I'm against foreign intervention, but I'm not even considering the possibility of an international humanitarian organization supporting President Bazoum's return to power."