Niger’s presidency has mentioned members of the presidential guard tried to maneuver towards President Mohamed Bazoum in an apparent coup attempt, warning that the military was able to assault them if they didn’t again down.
The presidency’s official Twitter account mentioned on Wednesday that presidential guards engaged in an “anti-Republican demonstration” and tried “in vain” to acquire the assist of the opposite safety forces.
It added that Bazoum and his household have been effectively after information businesses quoted safety sources as saying that the guards have been holding Bazoum contained in the presidential palace in the capital, Niamey.
The palace and ministries subsequent to it had been blocked off by army automobiles on Wednesday morning. Staff contained in the palace have been additionally unable to entry their places of work, in keeping with reviews.
Bazoum supporters tried to method the presidential complicated, however have been dispersed by members of the Presidential Guard who fired warning pictures, in keeping with an AFP reporter.
One particular person was damage, but it surely was not instantly clear if he was injured by a bullet or from falling as the group scattered. Al Jazeera nonetheless, couldn’t independently confirm the incident.
But there was calm elsewhere in Niamey.
Al Jazeera’s Ahmed Idris, reporting from Abuja in neighbouring Nigeria, mentioned there was a directive from the military for troops loyal to Bazoum to maneuver in to quell what appeared to be a coup attempt.
He mentioned there have been reviews from the Nigerien capital signifying that there have been “some form of negotiations”, with one report suggesting that the coup plotters wished Bazoum to “surrender power”.
“Right now, we also heard about mobilisation in the outskirts of Niamey where military barracks are situated,” he added.
The Chairperson of the African Union Commission @AUC_MoussaFaki condemns the coup attempt in #Niger.https://t.co/bWYHc36OgU pic.twitter.com/kqtrX0xqWm
— African Union (@_AfricanUnion) July 26, 2023
In an announcement, Moussa Faki Mahamat, chairperson of the African Union Commission, “strongly” condemned what he known as a coup attempt “by members of the military acting in total betrayal of their republican duty”.
West Africa’s 15-nation regional bloc, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) known as for Bazoum’s rapid and unconditional launch, and warned that every one these concerned could be held answerable for his security.
Bola Tinubu, president of Nigeria and chair of ECOWAS mentioned he was already in “close consultation” with different leaders in the area concerning the state of affairs.
Benin’s President Patrice Talon was on his approach to Niger after the “military misbehaviour” there, Tinubu mentioned.
“The ECOWAS leadership will not accept any action that impedes the smooth functioning of legitimate authority in Niger or any part of West Africa,” he mentioned in an announcement. “We will do everything within our powers to ensure democracy is firmly planted, nurtured, well rooted and thrives in our region.”
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned any effort to grab energy by power in Niger and known as on all actors to train restraint. He later spoke with President Bazoum and provided his “full support” to the chief, the UN spokesman mentioned.
The United States, France and EU additionally condemned the ability seize.
France joined calls to revive the integrity of democratic establishments, a spokeswoman for the French international ministry mentioned.
The US was deeply involved and condemned any effort to detain or subvert the functioning of Niger’s demoratically elected authorities, White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan mentioned.
“We specifically urge elements of the presidential guard to release President Bazoum from detention and refrain from violence,” Sullivan mentioned in an announcement, including the White House was monitoring to make sure the protection of US residents.
Military takeovers
It stays unsure why there was a revolt, however analysts mentioned the rising price of dwelling and perceptions of presidency incompetence and corruption could have pushed the guards’ transfer.
“The [attempted] coup fits into a long pattern of inability by the political class to speak to the economic challenges and the security and political instabilities in the country,” Emmanuel Kwesi Aning, professor of peacekeeping follow at Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre, Accra, advised Al Jazeera. “That, nevertheless, does not justify the attempted coup,” he mentioned.
“Corruption is the big elephant in the room, plus a fight against violent extremists. This is a challenge that almost all West African governments are facing,” he added.
Al Jazeera’s Charles Stratford, reporting from Dakar, Senegal, mentioned the incident probably has “huge implications”.
“Western members of the international community have been piling in lots of money into Niger, seen by many as one of the last bastions of potential security against … a huge security threat across the Sahel region,” Stratford mentioned.
Bazoum was elected president in a 2021 election that was the primary democratic transition of energy in a state that has witnessed 4 army coups since independence from France in 1960.
There have been 4 army takeovers in neighbouring Mali and Burkina Faso since 2020.
Those coups have been spurred in half by frustrations over authorities’ failure to stem a insurgent rebellion blighting the Sahel area – which incorporates Niger – that was as soon as derided because the “coup belt”.
There was additionally a thwarted coup attempt in Niger in March 2021, when a army unit tried to grab the presidential palace days earlier than Bazoum, who had simply been elected, was on account of be sworn in.
Ulf Leassing, an analyst with the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, described the present state of affairs as “more of a mutiny of members of the presidential guards than a coup attempt”.
“The army still seems to be loyal to him, there are reinforcements expected,” Leassing mentioned.
While Niger seemed to be secure, this has at all times been “a bit of an illusion – it’s a very poor, fragile country,” Leassing added.
“There is a lot of aid now coming in from Western countries … it gives the impression like it’s like a hub, a security anchor,” he mentioned. “But … the state is very weak, it’s very poor, and it doesn’t take much to overthrow a president in Niger.”
Niger is a key ally to Western powers looking for to assist native troops combating a battle which took root in Mali in 2012 and has unfold to neighbouring international locations together with Burkina Faso and the southern coastal states.
France moved troops to the nation from Mali final yr after its relations with the army authorities there soured – an rising sample in former French colonies in the area.
