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Coup attempt in Niger

West African regional bloc gives up intention to use force against Niger

ECOWAS will not resort to military intervention against Niger but will intensify sanctions pressure to make the insurgents free the republic’s president Mohamed Bazoum

DUBAI, August 4. /TASS/. The military leadership of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has given up its intention to use force against Niger where insurgents seized power in a state coup, the Al Arabiya TV Channel reported on Friday, citing a statement by the regional bloc’s defense ministers.

ECOWAS will not resort to military intervention against Niger but will intensify sanctions pressure to make the insurgents free the republic’s president Mohamed Bazoum, the TV Channel reported.

At their extraordinary summit held on July 30, the leaders of the ECOWAS member states demanded that the insurgents who had seized power in Niger release and reinstate President Bazoum and fully restore constitutional order in the republic. The ECOWAS states also gave the Niger insurgents a one-week deadline to meet these demands.

The West African regional bloc vowed "to take all measures" against the insurgents "necessary to restore constitutional order in the Republic of Niger" and did not rule out "the use of force."

Speaking on national television on August 2, General Abdourahamane Tchiani, chairman of the National Council for the Rescue of the Homeland, the country’s central authority after the coup, declared that Niger would not yield to regional and international pressure aimed at reinstating President Bazoum. He called on the people of Niger to be prepared for defending the homeland in the face of external threats.

Meanwhile, Niger’s politicians said that Bazoum was "in fine condition" and talked to leaders and representatives of governments from other countries over the phone but was banned from leaving the residence.

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Coup attempt in Niger

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