MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 09th August, 2023) Elite units of Niger's armed forces are being deployed to the airport and the presidential palace in the country's capital, Niamey, as uncertainty around possible military intervention lingers, Al Arabiya reported on Tuesday.
The broadcaster did not give any further details, neither did it specify the number of troops in deployment.
A coup took place in Niger on July 26. President Mohamed Bazoum was ousted and detained by his own guard, led by Gen. Abdourahmane Tchiani. The caretaker National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland closed the country's borders and broke security agreements with France, its former colonizer.
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) gave coup leaders one week to reinstate Bazoum and restore order, hinting that it would resort to military intervention otherwise. Its ultimatum expired this past Sunday. Mali and Burkina Faso, also ECOWAS members, have rejected the intervention scenario in Niger, showing discord in the ranks of what is generally considered a pro-French regional alliance.
