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West African bloc says 'we are going into Niger' if all else fails

Details: Written by northsouth; Category: Africa; Published: 17 August 2023; Hits: 759

By Maxwell Akalaare Adombila and Boureima Balima

ACCRA/NIAMEY - The West African bloc ECOWAS stands ready to intervene militarily in Niger should diplomatic efforts to reverse a coup there fail, a senior official told army chiefs who were meeting in Ghana on Thursday to discuss the details of a standby force.

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.

"By all means available, constitutional order will be restored in the country," he told assembled defence chiefs from member countries, listing past ECOWAS deployments in Gambia, Liberia and elsewhere as examples of readiness.

Niger has strategic importance beyond West Africa because of its role as a hub for foreign troops involved in the fight against Islamist insurgents in the Sahel region and its uranium and oil reserves.

Western countries fear the junta could follow the lead of neighbouring Mali, where the military government threw out French troops and instead invited in mercenaries from Russia's Wagner group, which has welcomed the coup in Niger.

In Niger's capital Niamey, where large crowds have taken part in protests against ECOWAS and in favour of the coup leaders, residents rejected the idea of an outside intervention to reinstate the elected president and civilian government.

"I'm not afraid because I know our armed forces are well prepared to deal with any eventuality," said radio technician Omar Yaye.

"ECOWAS is manipulated by foreign powers. When we see the reactions of France since the coup and especially the harshness of ECOWAS I can only think that these are coordinated actions between France and ECOWAS," he said, echoing anti-French rhetoric used by the junta since the coup.

'CAT AND MOUSE'

France, Niger's former colonial ruler, has denied the junta's accusation that it was seeking to destabilise the country or that it had violated its airspace. It has said it supported ECOWAS efforts to restore constitutional order.

French troops, along with U.S., German and Italian forces, are present in Niger as part of international efforts to combat the Islamist insurgents who have caused thousands of deaths and forced millions to flee their homes over the past decade.

Musah rejected the accusation that ECOWAS was being manipulated by France or any other outside power.

"What they forget is that ECOWAS is a rules-based organisation. We have our protocols, we have our norms and we are ready to protect them," he said.

"That's why the heads of state are saying if push comes to shove we are going into Niger with our own contingents, own equipment and our own resources to make sure we restore constitutional order. If other democracy-loving partners want to support us they are welcome," he 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. The exceptions were those also under military rule - Mali, Burkina Faso and Guinea - and tiny Cape Verde.

Musah criticised the junta's announcement that it had elements to put Bazoum, who is being detained, on trial for treason. The United Nations, European Union and ECOWAS have all expressed concerns over the conditions of his detention.

"The irony of it is that somebody who is in a hostage situation himself...is being charged with treason. When did he commit that high treason is everybody’s guess," Musah said.

West African regional group weighs next steps on Niger

Details: Written by northsouth; Category: Africa; Published: 12 August 2023; Hits: 523

ABUJA - West African leaders were weighing their next moves on Saturday as they seek to overturn a military coup in Niger that has rocked the region but also triggered a groundswell of support in the country.

Niger's military last month imprisoned President Mohamed Bazoum and assumed power, drawing condemnation from international powers and raising the spectre of further conflict in the impoverished Sahel region of West Africa which is already overrun by a deadly Islamist insurgency.

The regional bloc ECOWAS on Thursday decided to activate a task force drawing on troops from across the region for a possible military intervention to undo what was the seventh coup in West and Central Africa in three years.

At stake is not just the fate of Niger - a major uranium producer and key Western ally in the fight against the Islamists - but also the concerns of global powers with key strategic interests in the semi-desert zone.

U.S., French, German and Italian troops are stationed in Niger to repel local affiliates of al Qaeda and Islamic State that have killed thousands and displaced millions across the Sahel.

Western powers fear Russian influence could grow stronger if the junta in Niger follows Mali's example by ejecting Western troops and inviting in mercenaries from Russia's Wagner Group.

Thousands of people gathered in Niger's capital on Friday to demonstrate in favour of the coup. The rally began at a French military base in the capital Niamey, then protesters with signs and flags spread onto surrounding streets.

"Long live Russia," one protester's sign read. "Down with France.... Down with ECOWAS," referring to the Economic Community of West African States.

Regional army chiefs were set to meet in the coming days. It was not yet clear how long the ECOWAS force would take to assemble, how big it would be and if it would actually invade. The organisation stressed that all options were on the table and it hoped for a peaceful resolution.

Security analysts said the force could take weeks to set up, potentially leaving room for negotiations.

Meanwhile, the African Union, the European Union, the United States and the United Nations all said they were increasingly worried about Bazoum's detention conditions.

The U.N. Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk on Friday said the conditions were "rapidly deteriorating" and could amount to a violation of international human rights law.

ECOWAS prepares standby force for possible Niger intervention

Details: Written by northsouth; Category: Africa; Published: 11 August 2023; Hits: 518

By Edward Mcallister and Anait Miridzhanian

ABUJA, NIGERIA - West African nations on Friday worked on plans for a possible military intervention in Niger following an army coup there although they have not given up hope of a peaceful resolution to a crisis that has shaken the region.

The Nigerien military ousted former President Mohamed Bazoum on July 26, the seventh coup in West and Central Africa in three years and an action that raised the spectre of more unrest in an impoverished region battling an Islamist insurgency.

The regional bloc ECOWAS ordered the activation of a standby force on Thursday for possible use against the new junta, saying all options including military action were on the table.

It was not clear how big the force would be, if it would actually invade, and which countries would contribute. Security analysts said an ECOWAS force could take weeks or longer to assemble, potentially leaving room for negotiations.

Speaking to reporters on Thursday after a summit of its heads of state in the Nigerian capital Abuja, Ivory Coast President Alassane Ouattara said he considered the detention of Bazoum "a terrorist act" and promised to supply a battalion of troops to the force.

Asked how many troops that would involve, an Ivorian army spokesperson said a battalion consisted of 850 troops. Other countries are yet to say how many troops they could provide, if at all.

The coup in uranium-rich Niger, one of the world's poorest countries but a key ally for the West in the fight against Islamist militants in the Sahel region, was triggered by internal politics but has repercussions far beyond its borders.

U.S., French, German and Italian troops are stationed in Niger as part of the fight against the Islamist insurgency.

ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States) the United Nations and Western countries are putting pressure on the junta to stand down, while military governments in neighbouring Mali and Burkina Faso have said they will defend it.

ECOWAS said on Thursday that all its diplomatic efforts so far had been "defiantly repelled" by the junta.

France said it fully backed all the conclusions of the ECOWAS meeting. But it stayed clear of outlining any concrete support it could give to any potential intervention.

Reiterating support for the efforts by ECOWAS, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the United States would hold the junta accountable for the safety of Bazoum and his family. The EU also called for his immediate release.

"President Bazoum has dedicated his life to improve conditions for the people of Niger. Nothing justifies such a treatment," EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said in a statement.

Human Rights Watch said it had spoken to Bazoum this week and that the ousted president, who is being held captive by the junta with his wife and son, had told them that his family's treatment in custody was "inhuman and cruel".

"My son is sick, has a serious heart condition, and needs to see a doctor," HRW quoted Bazoum as telling them. "They’ve refused to let him get medical treatment."

HRW said Bazoum told them he had had no electricity since Aug. 2 and had not been allowed to see family and friends who wanted to bring them supplies.

West African leaders plan to meet on Niger but options are few

Details: Written by northsouth; Category: Africa; Published: 10 August 2023; Hits: 549

By SAM MEDNICK and CHINEDU ASADU

NIAMEY, Niger — West African heads of state are scheduled to meet Thursday after Niger’s military junta defied their deadline to reinstate the nation’s deposed president, but analysts say the Economic Community of West African States may be running out of options as support fades for a military intervention.

As Niger’s junta turns away most efforts at mediation, one analyst asserted that Russian meddling in the country has spiked in the two weeks since mutinous soldiers overthrew democratically elected President Mohamed Bazoum, who has refused to step down and is under house arrest.

The junta announced a new government on Wednesday night. More than half of the 21 positions were filled by civilians. The rest were military appointments.

Niger was seen as the last country in the Sahel region south of the Sahara Desert that Western nations could partner with to counter jihadi violence linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State group that has killed thousands and displaced millions of people. The international community is scrambling to find a peaceful solution to the country’s leadership crisis.

“Let me tell you, any coup that has succeeded beyond 24 hours has come to stay. So, as it is, they are speaking from the point of strength and advantage,” Oladeinde Ariyo, a security analyst in neighboring Nigeria, said. “So, negotiating with them will have to be on their terms.”

Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is leading the ECOWAS push. On Wednesday, a Nigerian delegation led by the Emir of Kano, Khalifa Muhammad Sanusi, met the junta’s leader, Gen. Abdourahmane Tchiani. The emir was one of few people allowed to meet Tchiani.

Acting U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Victoria Nuland met with the coup leaders earlier this week but was denied access to both Tchiani and Bazoum. A separate delegation comprised of ECOWAS, the United Nations and the African Union was barred from coming at all.

West Africa’s regional bloc has failed to stem past coups throughout the region. Niger is the fourth country in the 15-member state bloc to have experienced a coup in the last three years.

The bloc imposed harsh economic and travel sanctions and threatened to use military force if Bazoum was not reinstated by Sunday, a deadline the junta ignored. There is no indication the coup leaders are willing to budge on reinstating Bazoum, who says he is being held hostage in his residence with his wife and son.

An advisor to Bazoum who was not authorized to speak about the situation due to the sensitivity of it told The Associated Press on Wednesday that the family is without water and electricity and subsisting on rice and canned goods because food is running out.

U.N. deputy spokesman Farhan Haq said he was very concerned about reports of the “deplorable living conditions” Bazoum and his family were in and called for the president’s immediate release.

But as the junta becomes more entrenched, the options for negotiations are becoming limited, said Andrew Lebovich, a research fellow with the Clingendael Institute.

“It’s very difficult to say what might come out of it, but the fact that the initial deadline passed without intervention and that the (junta) has continued to hold a fairly firm line, indicate that they think they can outlast this pressure,” he said.

The main parties’ positions are dangerously far apart, according to the International Crisis Group, which said that if dialogue is going to succeed, each side is going to have to make concessions, which they’ve so far refused to do.

Since seizing power, the junta has cut ties with France and exploited popular grievances toward its former colonial ruler to shore up its support base. It also has asked for help from the Russian mercenary group Wagner, which operates in a handful of African countries and has been accused of committing human rights abuses.

Moscow is using Wagner and other channels of influence to discredit Western nations, Lou Osborn, an investigator with All Eyes on Wagner, a project focusing on the Wagner group, asserted to The Associated Press.

Tactics include using social media to spread rumors about Wagner’s upcoming arrival to Niger and employing fake accounts to mobilize demonstrations and spread false narratives, Osborn said. “Their objective is not to support the junta or an alternative political approach but to sow discord, create chaos, destabilize,” she said.

She pointed to a Telegram post on Wednesday by an alleged Wagner operative, Alexander Ivanov, asserting that France had begun the “mass removal of children” likely to be used for slave labor and sexual exploitation.

It was not immediately possible to verify the allegations. Wagner’s media arm is effectively disbanded and hasn’t replied to requests for comment since Niger’s coup.

While there’s no reason to believe Russia was behind the coup, it will leverage the opportunity to gain a stronger foothold in the region, something Western nations were trying to avoid, Sahel experts say.

France and the United States have more than 2,500 military personnel in Niger and along with other European nations have poured hundreds of millions of dollars of military assistance into propping up the country’s forces. Much of that aid was suspended after members of the presidential guard overthrew Bazoum.

Meanwhile, Niger’s approximately 25 million people are feeling the impact of the sanctions.

Some neighborhoods in the capital, Niamey are living in the dark with little access to electricity and there are frequent power cuts across the city. The country gets up to 90% of its power from Nigeria, which has cut off some of the supply.

Since the coup, Hamidou Albade, 48, said he’s been unable to run his shop on the outskirts of Niamey because there’s been no electricity. He also works as a taxi driver but lost business there, too, because a lot of of his foreign clients have left the city.

“It’s very difficult, I just sit at home doing nothing,” he said. Still, he supports the junta. “We’re suffering now, but I know the junta will find a solution to get out of the crisis,” he said.