Mutinous troops claimed to have ousted Niger’s democratically elected president late Wednesday, claiming on state television that they had ended the government due to the African country’s deteriorating security.
According to the military, all institutions have been suspended, and security personnel are in charge of the situation. External partners were asked not to intervene by the mutineers.
Following a day of uncertainty, members of Niger’s presidential guard surrounded the presidential mansion and detained President Mohamed Bazoum. There was no clear indication of whether other branches of the military supported the rebellion. It was unknown where the president was or if he had resigned at the time of the statement.
“This is due to the continued deterioration of the security situation, as well as poor economic and social governance,” stated Air Force Colonel Major Amadou Abdramane in the video. He claimed, sitting at a table with nine other police, that aerial and land borders had been blocked, and that a curfew had been imposed until the situation normalized.
The group, calling itself the National Council for the Protection of the Country, stated that it will continue to engage with the international and national communities.
Earlier on Wednesday, a tweet from Niger’s presidency indicated that members of the special guard unit participated in a “anti-Republican demonstration” and failed to gain support from other security forces. It stated that Bazoum and his family were safe, but that Niger’s army and national guard were “prepared to attack” if those involved in the action did not back down.
The African Union and Economic Community of West African States commissions condemned the events as an attempt to depose Bazoum, who was elected president two years ago in the country’s first peaceful, democratic transfer of power since independence from France in 1960.
Threats against Bazoum’s leadership would jeopardize Western efforts to pacify Africa’s Sahel area, which has been racked by coups in recent years. Mali and Burkina Faso have both been overrun by militants linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State organization since 2020.
In March, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Niger to deepen connections with a country where extremists have carried out assaults on civilians and military personnel, but the general security situation is not as bad as in neighboring countries.
During a tour in New Zealand on Thursday, Blinken reiterated the US disapproval of Niger’s president’s rebellion and stated that his team was in close contact with officials in France and Africa.
Blinken also stated that he spoke with Bazoum on Wednesday and “made clear that we strongly support him as the democratically elected president of the country.”
The rebellion, according to Ulf Laessing, head of the Sahel program at the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, is a “nightmare scenario for Western powers who had bet on Bazoum and Niger as new security anchors for the Sahel.”
“It remains to be seen if this is the final word.” Parts of the army are still likely to be loyal to Bazoum. “They benefited greatly from foreign military assistance in terms of equipment and training,” Laessing added.
Prior to the declaration, hundreds of people marched through the streets of Niamey, the capital, chanting “No coup d’etat” in support of the president. According to an Associated Press correspondent on the site, many rounds of gunfire fired from the presidential palace dispersed the protests and sent others fleeing for safety.
“We are here to show the people that we are not happy about this movement going on, and to show these military people that they can’t just take power like this,” protester Mohammed Sidi said. “We are a democratic country, we support democracy, and we don’t need this kind of movement.”
The attempted takeover of power was fiercely criticized by the world community.
Late Wednesday, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who called to Bazoum in the afternoon to express “his full support and solidarity,” delivered a scathing condemnation of the mutineers.
“He is deeply disturbed by the detention of President Mohamed Bazoum and is concerned for his safety and well-being,” said Stéphane Dujarric, Guterres’ spokesman.
Guterres demanded Bazoum’s immediate release without conditions, as well as “an immediate end to all actions undermining democratic principles in Niger,” according to the spokesman.
France and the United States both expressed concern and asked the participating guardsmen to reconsider their route. Bazoum’s leadership has elevated Niger to the status of a vital Western ally in the fight against Islamist militancy in Africa’s Sahel area.
“We strongly condemn any effort to detain or subvert the functioning of Niger’s democratically elected government, led by President Bazoum,” stated White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan. “We specifically urge elements of the presidential guard to release President Bazoum from detention and to refrain from using violence.”
Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, who was elected head of the ECOWAS Commission earlier this month, stated that the regional bloc’s leadership would reject any attempt to destabilize Niger’s administration.
“It should be quite clear to all players in the Republic of Niger that the leadership of the ECOWAS region and all lovers of democracy around the world will not tolerate any situation that incapacitates the democratically elected government of the country,” Tinubu said in an Abuja statement. “We will do everything in our power to ensure that democracy in our region is firmly planted, nurtured, well rooted, and thrives.”
