In the West African country of Niger, soldiers announced on television that the army had taken power. The institutions of the seventh republic have been dissolved, the air and land borders are closed and there is a nationwide curfew from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. (local time), Colonel Amadaou Abdramane said late in the evening on the national television station RTN.
Abdramane spoke of a so-called National Council for the Salvation of the Fatherland, which had taken power. It was initially unclear whether Abdramane and the nine other soldiers spoke for the entire army on television.
On Wednesday morning, the Presidential Guard, an elite unit of the army, arrested the democratically elected President Mohamed Bazoum (63), who has been in office since 2021, in his palace in the capital Niamey and blocked access to the palace and several ministries.
Negotiations with the mutineers
According to information from the EU, negotiations with the mutineers were ongoing in the evening. In addition, after talks with other heads of state in the region, a delegation from Nigeria should arrive in Niger. According to EU diplomats, Borrell and EU Council President Charles Michel spoke to Bazoum twice yesterday. He was therefore with his family in his residence until the end. UN Secretary-General António Guterres also spoke to Bazoum, a spokesman said on Twitter. He expressed his full support and solidarity.
An overthrow would have far-reaching consequences. With around 26 million inhabitants, Niger is one of the poorest countries in the world. After military coups in Mali and Burkina Faso, Niger was the last of the three neighboring countries in the Sahel to be led by a democratically elected government, making it a key partner for the US and EU in fighting growing instability in the region. At the end of last year, the EU decided on a military mission in Niger to combat terrorism in the region.
The Bundeswehr maintains an air transport base in Niamey for military engagements in West Africa, where around 100 German soldiers work. The soldiers are safe, according to earlier information from the Ministry of Defense on Wednesday.
