Did you miss the latest events on the conflict in Niger? 20 minutes takes stock for you every evening at 8 p.m. Who did what ? Who said what? Where are we ? The answer below.
The fact of the day
The African Union announced on Monday that it would hold a meeting to discuss “the evolution of the situation in Niger and efforts to remedy it”, in a press release published on X (ex-Twitter). The meeting of the Peace and Security Council, the body in charge of conflicts and security issues within the AU, is being held as the perpetrators of the coup d’etat in Niger have given various signals this weekend, saying first open to negotiation before announcing that they wanted to prosecute the overthrown President Mohamed Bazoum for “high treason”. The United States protested Monday against the prospects, raised by the military regime on Sunday, of legal proceedings against ousted President Mohamed Bazoum, believing that this would increase tension. “We are extremely appalled by reports that President Bazoum’s unjust detention is being added another notch,” State Department spokesman Vedant Patel told reporters, adding that it “certainly will not contribute to a peaceful resolution of this crisis”.
This meeting, which is taking place at its headquarters in Addis Ababa, comes after the postponement on Saturday of a meeting of ECOWAS chiefs of staff, which aimed to inform leaders “of the best options” following the their decision to activate and deploy their “standby force” to restore President Mohamed Bazoum, overthrown on July 26.
The number of the day
9. It is, in months of prison, the condemnation of Abdoulaye Seydou, leader of M62. Created a year ago, the coalition brings together a dozen associations and NGOs opposed to the presence of French military forces in Niger and supporting the military regime resulting from a coup d’etat. And this Monday, the Niamey Court of Appeal “cancelled” the conviction of the leader, imprisoned for seven months for a case linked to a jihadist attack.
sentence of the day
“We believe that even though this is an unfair challenge that has been imposed on us, we should be able to overcome it. And we will overcome it.
These are the words of the Prime Minister appointed by the military, taken from an interview given to the German media on Monday Deutsche Welle. Ali Mahaman Lamine Zeine commented on the measures taken by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), such as the suspension of financial and commercial transactions with Niger.
The trend of the day
The Maison de la presse du Niger, an association of journalists, is concerned about “pressure, threats, intimidation” against journalists. “Whether they are local journalists or foreign correspondents, although accredited by the Niger authorities, many of them practice their profession in growing insecurity,” she added in a press release.