DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ U.S. and Niger Announce Withdrawal of American Personnel by September
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-19 | by ( Eric Schmitt | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The withdrawal of 1,000 U.S. military personnel in Niger is underway, and all American troops will leave the West African country by Sept. 15, the U.S. and Nigerien governments said on Sunday. Anderson, met in Niamey, Niger’s capital, this past week with representatives of Niger’s military, led by the army chief of staff, Col. Maj. Mamane Sani Kiaou, the statement said. The meeting was meant “to coordinate the orderly and safe withdrawal of U.S. forces from Niger,” it added. The statement, released by the Pentagon, also said the two militaries had established procedures to ease the entry and the exit of U.S. personnel, including flight and landing clearances for military planes. Niger has balked at approving some of those clearances in recent months, American officials said.

Persons: Biden, Christopher P, Maier, Dagvin R.M, Anderson, Mamane Sani Kiaou Organizations: Pentagon Locations: Niger, West, U.S, Africa, Niamey, Niger’s, Maj

☆ US reaches agreement with Niger to withdraw military forces by September 15
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-19 | by ( Oren Liebermann | Anneclaire Stapleton | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —The US has reached an agreement with Niger to withdraw its military forces from the African nation by September 15, according to the US Defense Department and the Nigerien Ministry of National Defense. Niger’s military government announced in March that it had ended an accord with the US that allowed military personnel and civilian staff from the Department of Defense to operate in the country. The US delegation met with Niger’s ruling military junta last week to try to reach an agreement that would allow for the secure withdrawal of US forces and for clearances for military flights. The delegations also established procedures to facilitate the entry and exit of U.S. personnel, including overflight and landing clearances for military flights,” the joint statement said. Rebuffing the calls, the military junta instead began partnering more with Russia, whose forces are now operating at the same base from which US forces are withdrawing.

Persons: Balima, Chris Meier, Mamane Sani Kiaou, Biden, ” Organizations: CNN, US Defense Department, Nigerien Ministry of National Defense, Department of Defense, Getty, Nigerien Locations: Niger, Niamey, Anadolu, Russia, US, United States

☆ US hopes to maintain some forces in Niger as talks on withdrawal continue, officials say
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-10 | by ( Haley Britzky | Katie Bo Lillis | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Officials said a US delegation will travel to Niger over the weekend to discuss how it will be carried out. “Niger is pretty profound in the decision of the government there … to have us depart or at least go to very low numbers,” Maier said. Since the coup in July, airspace has been closed over Niger to foreign militaries who have all had to submit individual requests for airspace to conduct military flights, one US official told CNN. A US military official explained that the withdrawal will come in phases over a period of months. The footprint will continue to shrink in phases as equipment and personnel not deemed necessary are moved out of country.

Persons: “ We’ll, ” Chris Maier, ” Maier, Michael Langley, ”, — Organizations: CNN, Pentagon, US Africa Command, Russian Federation Locations: Niger, West African, “ Niger, Africa, Russia, United States, Chad, Russian, China, Israel

☆ Russian forces are operating at same base as US troops in Niger
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-02 | by ( Natasha Bertrand | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

The Russians have been using a separate hangar on the base, known as Air Base 101, the sources said, and are not operating in the same space as the Americans. They also raised questions about the future of Air Base 101 and whether it would be ceded to the Russians, CNN previously reported. Reuters first reported that the Russians troops had entered Air Base 101. Russian media reported on April 11 that Russia was sending equipment and 100 military trainers to Niger, though one of the sources said Russian troops were in the country well before April. More than half of the US troops stationed at the French military base in Chad’s capital, N’Djamena, have now left the country and relocated to Germany.

Persons: Michael Langley, Celeste Wallander, Sabrina Singh Organizations: CNN, Russian, Air Base, US Africa Command, Nigerien, Pentagon, Reuters, Russia’s Defense Locations: Niger, Ukraine, Russian, Russia, Chad, N’Djamena, Germany

☆ Niger: Russian weapons and trainers arrive, weeks after US military agreement ends
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-12 | by ( Michael Rios | Mariya Knight | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —Russia has delivered military equipment to Niger that will provide the African country with the “latest generation of anti-aircraft defense systems,” Nigerien state broadcaster RTN said Thursday. The equipment arrived in Niamey on Wednesday along with 100 Russian military instructors who will install the system and train Nigerien soldiers to use it, RTN added. AFP/Getty ImagesThe arrival of Russian instructors followed a recent phone conversation between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Nigerien General Abdourahamane Tiani on March 26 when the two leaders discussed “ensuring security and combating terrorism.”Since seizing power in a coup last year, Niger’s junta has been strengthening military ties with Russia while turning away from the US and France. Last month, the junta said it was ending an accord with the US that allowed military personnel and civilian staff from the US Department of Defense to operate in Niger. France, Niger’s former colonial ruler, withdrew its troops from the African nation at the end of 2023.

Persons: RTN, Novosti, Seyni, Vladimir Putin, Abdourahamane Tiani Organizations: CNN, RIA Novosti, NATO, Niger's National Council, Safeguard, Getty, Nigerien, US Department of Defense Locations: Russia, Niger, Nigerien, Niamey, Africa, ”, Agust, AFP, France, Niger . France

☆ Niger Orders American Troops to Leave Its Territory
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-17 | by ( Ruth Maclean | Eric Schmitt | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Niger said it is revoking its military cooperation deal with the United States, ordering 1,000 American armed forces personnel to leave the country and throwing the United States’ strategy in the region into disarray. The announcement by the West African nation’s military junta on Saturday came after meetings last week with a delegation from Washington and the top U.S. commander for Africa, Gen. Michael E. Langley. The move is in keeping with a recent pattern by countries in the Sahel region, an arid area south of the Sahara, of breaking ties with Western countries. American officials also voiced alarm in the meetings about several other issues, including whether Niger’s military government was nearing a deal to give Iran access to Niger’s vast uranium reserves, a concern that was reported earlier by The Wall Street Journal. Niger’s rejection of military ties with the United States follows the withdrawal from Niger of troops from France, the former colonial power that, for the past decade, has led foreign counterterrorism efforts against jihadist groups in West Africa, but which has lately been perceived as a pariah in the region.

Persons: Michael E Organizations: West African, Wall Street Locations: Niger, United States, States, Washington, Africa, Sahel, Russia, Iran, France, West Africa

The intensifying military cooperation between Russia and Niger is central to the dispute between the US and the Nigerien junta, officials said. Russia and Niger agreed to strengthen their military ties in January, Russia’s Defense Ministry said at the time. If the US were forced to withdraw, counterterrorism efforts across the region could take a hit, officials said. In return, Russia is profiting off the region’s natural resources, another official said, including the gold mines in Niger. Several European countries shared this goal, offering a measure of support to the junta, the official noted.

Persons: Michael Langley, Celeste Wallander, Col, Maj, Amadou Abdramane, Langley, Matthew Miller, ” Miller, what’s, Nusrat al, “ Organizations: CNN, US Africa Command, Air Base, American, Nigerien, Russia’s Defense, EU, Pentagon, Kremlin, West, Russian Federation, National Council, Wagner, US Locations: Africa, Russia, Africa . Niger, Niger, United States, America, Nigerien, Sahel, stoking, China, Russian, Central Africa, ”, Niamey, US, Agadez, Mali, Burkina Faso, Abdramane, Western Africa, Northwest Africa

☆ Niger ends military agreement with US, calls it ‘profoundly unfair’
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-16 | by ( Mitchell Mccluskey | Heather Chen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Niger’s military government announced that it has ended an accord with the US that allowed military personnel and civilian staff from the Department of Defense to operate in Niger – days after holding high-level talks with US diplomatic and military officials this week. “This agreement is not only profoundly unfair in its substance but it also does not meet the aspirations and interests of the Nigerien people,” he said. Senior Pentagon officials believe that keeping a presence in Niger is vital to efforts to tackle terrorism in the region. In a letter sent to Congress in December 2023, President Joe Biden noted that approximately 648 US military personnel remain deployed to Niger. During meetings, Nigerien and American officials discussed the military transition in Niger and military cooperation between the two countries, Abdramane said.

Persons: CNN —, Major Amadou Abdramane, –, ”, Joe Biden, Abdramane, “, ” Abdramane, Niger “ Organizations: CNN, Department of Defense, American Department of Defense, Nigerien, US, Niger . Senior Pentagon, Pentagon, American, US Department of Defense Locations: Niger, United States, Republic of Niger, CNN Niger, Niger ., US, Nigerien, Russia, Iran

The bus station in Agadez, a remote city of low mud-brick buildings in the West African nation of Niger, is buzzing again. For years, this portal was closed, at least officially. The country’s government, friendly to Europe, outlawed migration out of Agadez, and in exchange the European Union poured hundreds of millions of dollars into Niger’s coffers and the local economy. But last summer, after generals in Niger seized power in a military coup, the European Union suspended financial support to the government — and in response, the generals severed the migration arrangement with the European Union in November. The gate is once again open, and a fresh flock of hopeful migrants is once again passing through, to the relief of many locals.

Organizations: European Union Locations: Agadez, West African, Niger, West, Central Africa, North Africa, Europe

☆ The World Is Becoming More African
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-28 | by ( Declan Walsh | Hannah Reyes Morales | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +37 min

Old World Young Africa As the world grays, Africa blooms with youth. The World Is Becoming More African Part one of a series on how the youth boom is changing the continent, and beyond. But while a handful of African countries are poised to ride the demographic wave, others risk being swamped by it. In the West, racists and right-wing nationalists stoke fears of African population growth to justify hatred, or even violence. The age gap between geriatric leaders and restless youth is “a major source of tension” in many African countries, said Simon Mulongo, a former African Union diplomat from Uganda.

Persons: Lauren Leatherby, ”, Jean, Patrick Niambé, Hilton, Edward Paice, “, Keziah Keya, Keya, Paul R, Ehrlich, stoke, Lauren Leatherby “, Carlos Lopes, Burna, Weeks, “ It’s, Laolu Senbanjo, Tems, Toulaye Sy, Pritzker, Abdulrazak Gurnah, “ Africa’s, ” Long, exotica, Mulendema, Hannah O’Leary, “ We’re, Sipho Dlamini, Dlamini, Moawad, Optimists, Mo Ibrahim, Aubrey Hruby, birthrates, India’s, China’s, Akinwumi Adesina, States —, William Ruto, Paul Biya of, Biya, Wole Soyinka, Paul Kagame of, Nourdine, Nigeriens, Awade, Ali Bongo Ondimba, Simon Mulongo, Nuha Abdelgadir, Abdelgadir, gesturing, “ We’ve, ” Weeks, Abdelgadir’s, Modu Ali, Young, Saidu, Habiba Mohammed, Ms, Ha, Joon Chang, Nobody, Chang, Ibrahim, Touré Organizations: Young, United Nations, Southern, Northern, Western Asia Northern, United, Ivory Coast, African Union, Group, European Union ., Suisse, Africa Research Institute, Nigeria Mozambique Kenya “, Russia Canada Germany United, Russia Canada Germany United States Japan China Iran Egypt India Mexico Nigeria Ethiopia Ethiopia Dem, Russia Germany, China Egypt India Nigeria D.R.C, Russia Canada Germany United States Japan China Iran Egypt India Mexico Nigeria Ethiopia Dem, Bank, Nations, International, Bryn Mawr College, Angola, Angola Ivory Coast, Angola Ivory Coast Cameroon Dem, Africa Middle Africa Southern, Economic Commission, New, Citi, Spotify, Cannes Film, Burkina Faso, UNESCO, Disney, Amazon Prime, Netflix, “, Apple, Cape Town, Microsoft, Google, Infrastructure, McKinsey & Company, Pew Research Center, African Development Bank, Greek Coast Guard, Saudi, Africa Climate, Young Voters, Freedom House, University of Denver, United Arab, Japan Cuba Vatican City, Netherlands South Korea Belgium U.A.E, Islamic, Global, Center for Girls Education, School of Oriental, Studies Locations: grays, Africa, India, China, United States, Southern Asia, Asia, America, Caribbean, Northern America, Western Asia, Western Asia Northern America, Europe, London, New York, West Africa, Ivory, Abidjan, Russia, Turkey, Gulf, Nairobi, Nigeria Mozambique Kenya, Italy, Japan, Russia Canada Germany United States Japan China Iran Egypt India Mexico Nigeria Ethiopia Ethiopia, Congo Indonesia Brazil Australia South Africa Argentina, Russia Germany U.S, China Egypt India Nigeria, Brazil South Africa Australia, Russia Canada Germany United States Japan China Iran Egypt India Mexico Nigeria, Nigeria, Africa’s, Young, South Africa, Somalia, Mozambique, Mali, Gabon, Niger, Mozambique Nigeria Kenya, Kenya, Pennsylvania, Angola Ivory, Angola Ivory Coast Cameroon, Congo Algeria Egypt, Ghana Kenya Madagascar Mozambique Niger Nigeria, Tanzania Uganda South Africa, Northern Africa Eastern Africa, Africa Middle Africa, Africa Middle Africa Southern Africa, Guinea, Bissau, African, Qatar, Nigerian, Brooklyn, Target, French, Senegalese, Paris, Milan, Venice, Burkina, Tanzania, Saharan Africa, Nigeria Kenya Senegal In Lagos, Dakar, Zambia, South Korea, Sotheby’s, Lagos, Zimbabwe, Watford, Cape, Mombasa, Zanzibar, Cairo, Morocco, East Africa, Nigeria Mozambique Morocco, Sudanese, North Africa, East Asia, Thailand, Rwanda, Ivory Coast, States, Namibia, Kenyan, Paul Biya of Cameroon, Paul Kagame of Rwanda, United Arab Emirates, United States France Turkey, Germany, Russia India, Brazil, Japan Cuba, Japan Cuba Vatican City Spain Italy Saudi Arabia Qatar, Netherlands South Korea Belgium, Iran Canada, Niger’s, Niamey, Senegal Kenya Kenya, X’s, Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Senegal, Uganda, Khartoum, Sudan, Ethiopia, Al Qaeda, Islamic State, Chad, Burkina Faso, Nigeria Nigeria Morocco, hijabs, Zaria, American, Korea, South, England

☆ Niger junta says it has blocked President Bazoum's escape bid
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-20 | by ( Nimi Princewill | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Niger’s military government said Thursday it foiled a late-night escape attempt by deposed President Mohamed Bazoum to flee to neighboring Nigeria after being held in custody for nearly three months following his ouster in a coup. The deposed Nigerien leader – who has yet to resign as president– had been placed under house arrest since the military junta overthrew him on July 27. Later that month, the junta said it had “gathered the necessary evidence” to prosecute Bazoum for “high treason.”The junta has held on to power despite pressure from Niger’s Western and regional allies. Last week, the US said it was putting a hold on its assistance programs to Niger, including funding while formally declaring Bazoum’s ouster as a coup. The military rulers said they ovethrew Bazoum because of the country’s security problems and struggling economy.

Persons: CNN —, Mohamed Bazoum, Bazoum, they’ll, ”, –, Bazoum’s Organizations: CNN, Nigerien Locations: Nigeria, Niger’s, Niamey, ”, Niger

WASHINGTON (AP) — Secretary of State Antony Blinken called Niger’s deposed President Mohamed Bazoum on Monday ahead of an expected decision by the Biden administration to formally declare that his overthrow was a coup d’etat. “The United States calls for the immediate release of all those unjustly detained following the military takeover,” the department said. The administration had been delaying a coup decision because Niger plays a critical role in U.S. counterterrorism activity in Africa's Sahel region. The officials could not say if the expected coup determination would result in the withdrawal of any U.S. personnel from Niger. The U.S., France and other European countries had poured hundreds of millions of dollars into shoring up the Nigerien military.

Persons: Antony Blinken, Mohamed Bazoum, Biden, Blinken, Blinken “, Blinken's, —, Emmanuel Macron Organizations: WASHINGTON, —, The State Department, State Department, Pentagon, Islamic, Nigerien Locations: Niger, United States, Sahel, The U.S, France

PARIS (AP) — President Emmanuel Macron announced Sunday that France will end its military presence in Niger and pull its ambassador out of the country after its democratically elected president was deposed in a coup. He noted that France’s military presence in Niger was in response to a request from Niger’s government at the time. The military cooperation between France and Niger had been suspended since the coup. The junta leaders claimed that Bazoum's government wasn’t doing enough to protect the country from the insurgency. After the deadline expired without France recalling him, the coup leaders then revoked his diplomatic immunity.

Persons: Emmanuel Macron, Macron, Mohamed Bazoum, ”, Sylvain Itte, U.N, Antonio Guterres Organizations: PARIS, “, African Locations: France, Niger, Africa, Mali, Burkina Faso, French, “ France, New York

ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — The military government that seized power in Niger has accused United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres of “obstructing” the West African nation's full participation at the U.N.'s annual meeting of world leaders in order to appease France, Niger's former colonizer, and its allies. The junta had wanted Niger’s former ambassador to the United Nations, Bakary Yaou Sangare, who was made foreign minister after the coup, to speak on its behalf at the General Assembly. The deposed president appealed to a regional court this week to order his release and reinstatement as president. Bazoum took office in 2021 in the country's first transfer of power between elected leaders since the country's independence from France in 1960. ECOWAS has said it considers a military intervention an option for restoring Bazoum as president.

Persons: Antonio Guterres, Col, Maj, Amadou Abdramane, Mohamed Bazoum, Bakary Yaou Sangare, Bakary, ” Stéphane, Guterres, Hassoumi Massoudou, ”, France, ” Abdramane, Bazoum Organizations: United Nations, African, General Assembly, General, Nigerien, European Union, West African, ECOWAS Locations: ABUJA, Nigeria, Niger, France, New York, Bazoum

☆ As Junta Tightens Grip, Niger Is Being Strangled by Sanctions
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-15 | by ( Elian Peltier | More About Elian Peltier | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Since a military coup in Niger this summer, work days for Ahmed Alhousseïni have been consumed with calls from increasingly worried clients and colleagues asking the same questions. An executive for a leading food importer in Niger, Mr. Alhousseïni said one recent morning that he had spent his weekend hunting for cooking oil in Niamey, the capital city, with no luck. After mutinous soldiers seized power in Niger, West African countries froze financial transactions, closed their borders with Niger and cut off most of its electricity supply in an effort to pressure the generals into restoring constitutional order. Sanctions and other penalties are now strangling Niger’s economy, with food prices and shortages growing and many medicines becoming increasingly scarce. “Closing Niger’s borders is like depriving us of air,” said Mr. Alhousseïni, the managing director of Oriba Rice.

Persons: Ahmed Alhousseïni, Alhousseïni, Gen, Abdourahmane, haven’t, ”, Oriba Rice Locations: Niger, Niamey, Ghana, Senegal, West

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon said Thursday that it has not restarted counterterrorism operations in Niger, a day after the head of U.S. airpower for Europe and Africa said those flights had resumed. Gen. James Hecker, responding to a question from The Associated Press at a security conference Wednesday, said the U.S. military has been able to resume some manned aircraft and drone counterterrorism operations in Niger. In the weeks since, the approximately 1,100 U.S. forces deployed there have been confined inside their military bases. And we’re able to do some of our surveillance operations primarily for force protection in the area. The bases are a critical part of America’s overall counterterrorism efforts in West Africa.

Persons: James Hecker, Sabrina Singh, “, ”, Robert Firman, Hecker, ” Hecker Organizations: WASHINGTON, Pentagon, Associated Press, U.S ., Nigerien, Department, Atlantic Council, State Department Locations: Niger, Europe, Africa, U.S, Niamey, Niger’s, West Africa

☆ Niger: French official held by Niger security forces freed
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-14 | by ( ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

Reuters —France’s Foreign ministry on Thursday announced the release of Stephane Jullien, a French official who had been held by security forces in Niger. The man, an adviser to French nationals in Niger, had been arrested by Niger security forces on September 8, according to the foreign ministry in Paris. Jullien is an elected official who represents French expatriates and works closely with the country’s embassies and consulates. According to the foreign ministry website, there are 442 such advisers worldwide. Their role is to help French expats with issues relating to work, schools, social security and other issues.

Persons: Reuters —, Stephane Jullien, Paris, Mohamed Bazoum Organizations: Reuters, French Locations: Niger, Paris, France, Niamey, French

☆ With Aid on the Line, Biden Officials Debate ‘Coup’ Finding for Niger
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-06 | by ( Michael Crowley | More About Michael Crowley | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

For more than a month in Niger’s capital, Niamey, the democratically elected president has been a prisoner in his own home. To many people, the military takeover in Niger in late July was obviously a coup. And yet, in a prime example of contorted diplomatic-speak, Biden administration officials have so far carefully danced around the word. That, they say, is because the word “coup” has major policy implications: Congress has mandated that the United States must halt all economic and military aid to any government deemed to have been installed by a military coup until democracy is restored in that country. But U.S. officials worry it could also reduce America’s leverage over Niger’s future, jeopardize military operations against militants in the region, invite Russian influence and exacerbate humanitarian suffering in one of the world’s poorest countries.

Persons: Biden, ” Locations: Niger’s, Niamey, Niger, United States

☆ Fact Check-Video shows Burkinabe soldiers at Russia-Africa Summit, not Nigeriens
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-01 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

A video of soldiers from Burkina Faso browsing an arms exhibition at the July 2023 Russia-Africa Summit in St Petersburg is being falsely claimed online to show personnel from Niger. “Niger Republic Army showing readiness as they jet to Russia to acquire weapons to speak to ECOWAS soldiers in a language they will understand. There is no evidence that the soldiers in the video are with Niger’s military. Part of the video was filmed by Russia state-owned network Zvezda TV, which also said it showed Burkinabe soldiers examining weapons at the July 27-28 meet (here) (here). The video shows soldiers from Burkina Faso, not Niger.

Persons: Ibrahim Traore, Mohamed Bazoum, Abdourahamane Tiani, Read Organizations: Africa, Posts, Facebook, Nigerien, West African, ECOWAS, “ Niger, Army, Zvezda TV, Reuters, Roscongress Foundation Locations: Burkina Faso, Russia, St Petersburg, Niger, “

CNN —The military junta in Niger has canceled the visa of the French ambassador and instructed police to expel him, after ordering the diplomat last week to leave the country. The police services have been instructed therefore to proceed with his expulsion.”The decision taken on August 25 regarding the ambassador’s accreditation is “irrevocable,” the junta added in the letter. French envoy Sylvain Itte was told to leave by the junta for refusing to attend a meeting scheduled with Niger’s foreign minister, including “other actions by the French government that are against Niger’s interest,” the Nigerien foreign ministry said last week. French President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday that Itte will not leave Niger, despite the expiration of the junta’s deadline for his departure. Up to 1,500 French soldiers are stationed in Niger, which has been a major partner of the French in the Sahel region.

Persons: ”, Sylvain Itte, “, Mohamed Bazoum, Emmanuel Macron, Itte Organizations: CNN, Nigerien Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Nigerien, Embassy, French Ministry of Foreign Affairs Locations: Niger, French, France, Sahel

CNN —A group of military officers claiming to represent “defense and security forces” in Gabon announced on Wednesday they had seized power in the African nation, according to a televised address circulating on social media. In the broadcast, the military officer said the election results would be voided and the country’s borders would be closed until further notice. Bongo’s long ruleEarlier on Wednesday, Gabon’s election body said Bongo had won the presidential election with 64.27% of the vote, after a delay-plagued general election that the opposition denounced as fraudulent. The elder Bongo came into power in 1967, seven years after the country’s independence from France. Ahead of the election, the non-profit Reporters Without Borders condemned the Gabonese government for obstructing foreign press coverage of the event.

Persons: ”, Ali Bongo, “, Bongo, Albert Ondo Ossa, Omar Bongo, Ondo, Bongo’s Organizations: CNN, Gabon24, Twitter, Senate, National Assembly, Constitutional, Economic, Social, Environmental Council, Reuters, Union, Borders, United Nations, Gabonese Locations: Gabon, Gabonese, Libreville, West, Central Africa, Mali, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Chad, Niger, Ondo, France

☆ Fact Check-Video does not show Wagner mercenaries landing in Niger
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-29 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A years-old video of a plane landing is being shared on social media to falsely claim it’s proof of Wagner mercenary fighters arriving in Niger in 2023. Authorities in Niger have officially confirmed the presence of Wagner fighters in the country” (here). Reuters did not independently verify the location of the 2006 video, though the deserted area around the runway coupled with buildings close by is markedly similar to the topography around Khartoum International Airport. Reuters’ reporting on the coup in Niger can be found (here). The video dates to at least 2006, thus is unrelated to Wagner and the 2023 coup in Niger.

Persons: Wagner, Mohamed Bazoum, Read Organizations: West African, ECOWAS, Wagner PMC, Authorities, Facebook, Reuters, YouTube, Khartoum International, Google, Center for Strategic, International Studies Locations: Niger, Khartoum, Sudan

CNN —France’s ambassador to Niger is staying put in the West African country in defiance of an ultimatum by its military rulers ordering his exit within 48 hours on Friday. French President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday that Itte will not leave Niger, despite the expiration of the junta’s deadline. Up to 1,500 French soldiers are stationed in Niger, which has been a major partner of the French in the Sahel region. “As already expressed, the European Union does not and will not recognize the authorities resulting from the putsch in Niger,” Massrali added. Also at the weekend, pro-junta demonstrators, mostly nationals of neighboring Benin and Burkina Faso thronged the streets to express support for Niger’s military administration.

Persons: CNN —, Sylvain Itte, Emmanuel Macron, Itte, Macron, ”, Mohamed Bazoum, Bazoum, Monday, “, Nabila Massrali, Massrali Organizations: CNN, Nigerien, European Union, EU, Niger, ECOWAS Locations: Niger, West, ” France, France, Sahel, European, ., Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali

CNN —Niger’s junta ordered the French ambassador in Niamey on Friday to leave the country within 48 hours, according to the Nigerien Foreign Ministry. In a statement published by state-run broadcaster ORTN, the Nigerien Foreign Ministry said the ambassador Sylvain Itte had refused to attend a meeting scheduled for Friday with the country’s foreign minister. The ministry said Nigerien authorities had withdrawn Itte’s credentials in light of the refusal, also citing “other actions by the French government that are against Niger’s interest.”“France has taken note of the putschists’ request,” the French Foreign Ministry told AFP late Friday. “The putschists do not have the authority to make this demand, the ambassador’s approval comes only from the legitimate, elected Nigerien authorities” the ministry said. CNN has reached out to the French Foreign Ministry for comment.

Persons: CNN —, Sylvain Itte, ”, “ Organizations: CNN, Nigerien Foreign Ministry, ORTN, Nigerien, French Foreign Ministry, AFP, US State Department, Niger’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs Locations: Niamey, France

CNN —The African Union has suspended Niger following the takeover of the West African country by a military junta on July 26. The council will review an assessment of the “economic, social and security implications of deploying a Standby Force in Niger,” it said. ECOWAS chiefs had initially given the junta a seven-day ultimatum to restore power or face consequences, including military action. That planned action did not happen as many attempts at dialogue and diplomacy have been made by ECOWAS and allies such as US and the European Union. The African Union affirmed its “solidarity” with ECOWAS’s efforts to restore constitutional order in Niger “through diplomatic means,” it said.

Persons: –, “, Security Abdel, Fatau Musah, General Abdourahamane Tchiani, Mohamed Bazoum, ” Organizations: CNN, African Union, Security, West, Economic, West African States, Force, European Union, Political Affairs, Peace, Union Locations: Niger, West, Republic of Niger, ”, Ghana

Search resuls for: "Niger’s"

25 mentions found