E fundit!

11:13 TODAY

Prison escorts in protest/ "VIP" names emerge supporting the rally

For several days, a new wave of protests has begun, taking...

Bloc of West African states: Military intervention in Niger, last resort

2023-08-02 19:08:35, Kosova & Bota CNA

The regional bloc of West African states said military intervention in junta-led Niger "is a last resort" as Nigeria cut electricity supplies to intensify pressure on the coup leaders.

The army chiefs of the states of this bloc met on August 2 to prepare a response to the situation in Niger. A delegation from Nigeria was also present at the meeting, a week after the military coup that forced France to evacuate its citizens.

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) over the weekend imposed trade and financial sanctions and gave the coup plotters a week to return power to the democratically elected president or warned they would face the use of force.

"The military option is the last resort, but we are prepared for any possibility," said Abdel-Fatau Musah, commissioner for foreign policy, peace and security in ECOWAS.

Musah said an ECOWAS team led by former Nigerian leader Abdulsalami Abubakar was in Niger for "negotiations".

ECOWAS will hold a three-day meeting in Abuja.

Currently, this regional group is led by Nigeria, which is the military and economic superpower in West Africa.

This country has already cut off electricity supplies to Niger.

Nigeria, one of the poorest countries in the world, receives 70 percent of its electricity from Nigeria.

Meanwhile, Mali and Burkina Faso, which are led by military juntas, have warned against any military intervention in Niger, considering that such a thing would be a "declaration of war" against them.

One of the leaders of the coup, General Salifou Mody, has gone to Mali for negotiations. However, more details have not been disclosed about this visit.

Niger's president, Mohamed Bazoum, was ousted in a military coup on July 26. He was elected president in 2021, in the first elections in this country where a peaceful handover of power took place.

Because of the coup, France has announced that it will continue the evacuation of its citizens from Nigeria. So far, 500 people, most of them French, have left this country. However, among the evacuees there are also citizens of Portugal, Belgium, Nigeria, Ethiopia and Lebanon.

Italy has also announced that it has evacuated about 100 foreigners from Nigeria, and ANSA radio reported that among them were 36 Italians and 21 Americans.

Meanwhile, Germany has called on its citizens to leave. The United States - which has 1,100 troops stationed in Niger - has not yet made any announcement about the evacuation of Americans./ REL