Niger

General Abdourahmane Tiani, head of Niger’s military junta, has authorised the armed forces of Mali and Burkina Faso to intervene in Nigerien territory in the event of an attack, the foreign ministers of the three countries said in a joint statement on Thursday, according to AFP and Reuters. Niger’s president, Mohamed Bazoum, and his government suffered a military coup on July 26. The military junta has formed a new government in the country.
     ECOWAS has since decided that there will be an army on standby to intervene in Niger. ECOWAS is an association of West African countries. The organisation has said it is ready to send soldiers into Niger if it fails to resolve the conflict diplomatically. Niger is the fourth country in western Africa to suffer a coup since 2020. Mali, Guinea and Burkina Faso are the other three countries. The juntas of Burkina Faso and Mali have said that any military intervention in their neighbour would be considered a “declaration of war” against their countries./ritzau/