Niger Coup Supporters Protest West African Military Force
TEHRAN (Tasnim) - Thousands of Niger coup supporters took to the streets on Friday to protest against plans by West African nations to deploy a military force to the country, as a key regional meeting on a possible intervention was scrapped.
ECOWAS had approved a “standby force” to reinstate elected President Mohamed Bazoum, with the EU’s top diplomat expressing concern about his conditions in detention since he was ousted by members of his guard on July 26.
Chiefs of staff from member states of the West African bloc had been set to attend a meeting on Saturday in Ghana’s capital Accra, regional military sources had said on Friday, AFP reported.
But they later said the meeting had been suspended indefinitely for “technical reasons”.
The sources said the meeting was originally set up to inform the organization's leaders about “the best options” for activating and deploying the standby force.
ECOWAS has yet to provide details on the force or a timetable for action, and the leaders have emphasized they still want a peaceful solution.
The last-minute cancellation came as thousands of coup supporters rallied near a French military base in Niger on Friday.
Protesters near the base on the outskirts of the capital Niamey shouted “Down with France, down with Ecowas”.
The president of ECOWAS member Cape Verde, Mr. Jose Maria Neves, spoke out against a military intervention on Friday and said his country was unlikely to participate in such a campaign.
Military-ruled ECOWAS nations Mali and Burkina Faso have warned an intervention would be a “declaration of war” on their countries.
The coup is Niger’s fifth since the landlocked country gained independence from France in 1960.
