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☆ 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

☆ Algeria proposes transition to resolve Niger crisis
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

REUTERS/Francis Kokoroko/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsAug 29 (Reuters) - Algeria is proposing an initiative to resolve the political crisis in neighbouring Niger with a six-month transition period led by a civilian, Foreign Minister Ahmed Attaf said on Tuesday. Attaf, who recently toured West African states, said "most of the countries we have talked to are against military intervention to end the crisis". Algeria has repeatedly said it was against military intervention, pointing to the chaos that followed NATO action in Libya in 2011 during its uprising against longtime leader Muammar Gaddafi. Algerian officials have spoken three times since the coup to the Niger military leader, who wants a transitional period of up to three years, Attaf said. Last week Algerian state television said President Abdelmadjid Tebboune had denied permission to France for a possible military operation in Niger, but France denied it had sought any such permission.

Persons: Francis Kokoroko, Ahmed Attaf, Attaf, Muammar Gaddafi, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, Lamine Chikhi, Angus McDowall, Andrew Cawthorne, Alex Richardson Organizations: Defense, REUTERS, West, ECOWAS, NATO, United Nations, Thomson Locations: Republic of Niger, Accra, Ghana, Algeria, Niger, West African, Libya, Sahel, Algerian, 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

REUTERS/Francis Kokoroko Acquire Licensing RightsABUJA/NIAMEY, Aug 19 (Reuters) - A delegation from West Africa's main regional bloc ECOWAS met Niger's ousted president Mohamed Bazoum and held talks with junta leader General Abdourahmane Tiani in the capital Niamey on Saturday, a Nigerian presidential spokesperson said. The group that flew in was led by Nigeria's former military leader Abdulsalami Abubakar and included ECOWAS commission president Omar Touray, the source said. "After meeting .... (junta leader) General Abdoulrahmane Tchiani, the ECOWAS delegation in Niger have also visited President Mohamed Bazoum this evening," he wrote on messaging platform X, formerly known as Twitter. There was no immediate comment from the junta, which has held president Mohamed Bazoum since seizing power despite international calls for his release. ECOWAS has taken a harder stance on the Niger coup, the wider region's seventh in three years, than it did on previous ones.

Persons: Francis Kokoroko, Niger's, Mohamed Bazoum, General Abdourahmane Tiani, Abdulsalami Abubakar, Omar Touray, Abdulaziz Abdulaziz, General Abdoulrahmane Tchiani, Tiani, Alessandra Prentice, Toby Chopra, Jane Merriman Organizations: Chiefs, Defense, REUTERS, Rights, ECOWAS, West, Twitter, Islamic, U.S . State Department, Thomson Locations: Republic of Niger, Accra, Ghana, Rights ABUJA, NIAMEY, West Africa's, Niamey, Niger, al Qaeda, Islamic State

☆ West African bloc holds talks in Niger with junta
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

The ECOWAS Committee of Chiefs of Defense staff brief the press on plans to deploy its standby force to the Republic of Niger, in Accra, Ghana, August 18, 2023. REUTERS/Francis Kokoroko Acquire Licensing RightsABUJA, Nigeria Aug 19 (Reuters) - A delegation from West Africa's main regional bloc ECOWAS flew to Niger's capital Niamey on Saturday to hold talks with the junta, an ECOWAS source told Reuters, as the bloc pursues diplomatic ways to overturn the July 26 coup. ECOWAS has taken a harder stance on the Niger coup, the wider region's seventh in three years, than it did on previous ones. The credibility of the bloc is at stake because it had said it would tolerate no further such overthrows. Reporting by Felix Onuah Writing by Alessandra Prentice; Editing by Toby ChopraOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Francis Kokoroko, Mohamed Bazoum, Omar Touray, Felix Onuah, Alessandra Prentice, Toby Chopra Organizations: Chiefs, Defense, REUTERS, Rights, ECOWAS, Thomson Locations: Republic of Niger, Accra, Ghana, Rights ABUJA, Nigeria, West Africa's, Niamey, Niger

☆ West African militaries meet to finalise possible Niger intervention
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Military personnel gesture as the ECOWAS anthem is played during a meeting of the Committee of Chiefs of Defense staff on the deployment of the ECOWAS standby force in the Republic of Niger, in Accra, Ghana. REUTERS/Francis Kokoroko Acquire Licensing RightsACCRA/NIAMEY, Aug 18 (Reuters) - West African army chiefs were due to hold a second and final day of talks on Friday in Ghana's capital Accra, where they have been hashing out the details of a possible military intervention in Niger if diplomacy fails to reverse a military coup. Military officers deposed Nigerien President Mohamed Bazoum on July 26 and have defied calls from the United Nations, the West African bloc ECOWAS and others to reinstate him, prompting regional powers to order a standby force to be assembled. He said most of the bloc's 15 member states were prepared to participate in the standby force excepting those also under military rule - Mali, Burkina Faso and Guinea - and tiny Cape Verde. Any escalation would further destabilise West Africa's impoverished Sahel region, which is already battling a decade-old Islamist insurgency.

Persons: Francis Kokoroko, Mohamed Bazoum, Security Abdel, Fatau Musah, Alessandra Prentice, Philippa Fletcher Organizations: ECOWAS, Chiefs, Defense, REUTERS, Rights, United Nations, West African, Political Affairs, Peace, Security, Islamic, Thomson Locations: Republic of Niger, Accra, Ghana, Rights ACCRA, NIAMEY, Ghana's, Niger, West Africa, Mali, Burkina Faso, Guinea, Cape Verde, Sahel, al Qaeda

[1/3] ECOWAS Committee of Chiefs of Defense staff meet on the deployment of its standby force in the Republic of Niger, in Accra, Ghana. Niger military officers deposed President Mohamed Bazoum on July 26 and have defied calls from the United Nations, ECOWAS and Western powers to reinstate him, prompting West African heads of state to order the standby force to be assembled. "Let no one be in doubt that if everything else fails, the valiant forces of West Africa...are ready to answer to the call of duty," ECOWAS Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security Abdel-Fatau Musah said. Musah accused the Niger coup leaders of "playing cat-and-mouse" with ECOWAS by refusing to meet with its envoys and seeking justifications for their takeover of power. He said most of the bloc's 15 member states were prepared to participate in the standby force that could intervene in Niger.

Persons: Francis Kokoroko, Mohamed Bazoum, Security Abdel, Fatau Musah, Russia's Wagner, I'm, Omar Yaye, Musah, Bazoum, Anait Miridzhanian, Edward McAllister, Estelle Shirbon, Angus MacSwan Organizations: Chiefs, Defense, REUTERS, West, ECOWAS, United Nations, Political Affairs, Peace, Security, European Union, Media, Thomson Locations: Republic of Niger, Accra, Ghana, Niger, Niamey, ACCRA, NIAMEY, West Africa, Gambia, Liberia, Sahel, Mali, Niger's, France, Burkina Faso, Guinea, Cape Verde

ECOWAS responded days later by enacting sanctions and issuing an ultimatum to the ruling military junta: stand down within a week or face a potential military intervention. ECOWAS leaders have said their preference is to find a diplomatic solution to the crisis and would send in troops as a last resort. The regional bloc will “uphold all measures and principles agreed upon by the extraordinary summit held on Niger on 30th July 2023,” at which strong sanctions were decided against the military junta in Niger. Niger’s armed forces appeared to be preparing for possible military intervention this week, a military source told CNN. Confusion and concernSeveral analysts told CNN that a military intervention in Niger would probably not be imminent, as it takes time to assemble the ECOWAS troops.

Persons: Omar Alieu Touray, Mohamed Bazoum, Touray, it’s, Murtala Abdullahi, Bola Tinubu, Abdourahamane Alkassoum, ”, Cameron Hudson Organizations: CNN, West, Economic, West African States, ECOWAS, ”, Nigerien, Center, Strategic, International Studies Locations: Abuja, Nigeria, Republic of Niger, ”, Niger, ” Mali, Burkina Faso, Guinea, ” Abuja, Gambia, “ Niger

☆ Protesters descend on French Embassy in Niger shouting 'long live Putin'
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-30 | by ( Omar Hama Saley | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Niamey, Niger CNN —Tense and sometimes violent scenes played out in front of the French Embassy in Niger Sunday as thousands of people who support a military coup voiced anger over France’s influence in its former colony. Some protesters tore down a plaque identifying the Embassy, stomped on it and then replaced it with Russian and Nigerien flags. Shouts of “long live Putin,” “long live Russia” and “down with France” could be heard among the crowds. President Emmanuel Macron’s office said France would immediately retaliate against anyone who attacks French nationals or facilities in Niger. Niger’s military leaders may have found one potential ally: the country’s eastern neighbor, Chad.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Mohamed Bazoum, Putin, ”, Emmanuel Macron’s, Bazoum, Stringer, Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno, ‘ We’re, I’ve, Karimou Sidi, “ Organizations: Niger CNN, Embassy, Kremlin, Russian, Nigerien, Niger, National Council for, Homeland, Reuters, West African States, Sunday, ECOWAS, European Union, ” Locations: Niamey, Niger, stomped, Nigerien, Russia, France, Reuters Niger, Republic of Niger, ”, Chad, Niger’s, Africa ’ Niger, French, Kanto, Africa, ” Kanto, St, Petersburg, Ukraine, Sahel, Burkina Faso

CNN —The leader of Niger has reportedly been seized by members of the presidential guard, triggering warnings from regional powers a coup is underway. They said heavily armed members of the Presidential Guard began assembling outside the Presidential Palace early on Wednesday morning. The journalist observed roughly twenty members of the Presidential Guard outside the palace complex later in the day. A statement on the presidency’s social media channels said President Mohamed Bazoum is “doing well.” CNN cannot verify the statement. Boureima Hama/AFP/Getty ImagesNigerian president Bola Tinubu – the current chair of ECOWAS – has also issued a statement condemning “unpleasant developments” in Niger.

Persons: Mohamed Bazoum, ”, Boureima, Bola Tinubu, –, Tinbu, Bazoum Organizations: CNN, West African States, “, Presidential Guard, Republic, Army, National Guard, “ ECOWAS, United States Africa Command, Reuters, Agence France, Presse, country’s Ministry of Defence, Ministry, Interior, la Republique, Agency, Getty Images, ECOWAS Locations: Niger, Niamey, ”, West, Republic, United, AFP, “, Rue, Boureima Hama, Republic of Niger, West Africa, France

☆ Fact Check-Screenshot of fabricated tweet falsely attributed to Nigeria state governor Bello
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

A fabricated tweet that is falsely attributed to Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello has been shared by people online. I am in charge of my State and will not allow anyone intrude in my affairs” (here ). However, Reuters did not find any record of such a Tweet on Bello’s Twitter account (twitter.com/OfficialGYBKogi ). The state governor also published a denial on Twitter of ever writing such a post. Bello published a denial on his Twitter profile.

Persons: Yahaya Bello, Bello, Tinubu, Tweet, Nigeria ”, Read Organizations: Reuters, Twitter, Google Locations: Federal Republic, Nigeria

☆ Nigeria's Tinubu defends win in disputed presidential poll
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) said Tinubu garnered 8.79 million votes in the weekend election, ahead of main opposition challenger Atiku Abubakar's 6.98 million votes. Peter Obi, an outsider popular with younger and more educated urban voters, garnered 6.1 million votes. "I am very happy I have been elected the president of the federal republic of Nigeria," Tinubu said to cheers in Abuja. Nigeria's election was meant to be its fairest and most open contest to date. As Lagos governor, Tinubu won praise for partially fixing some of the cities problems, including reducing violent crime, waste collection and traffic.

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