US forces in Niger are restricting their movement and assessing the situation following a military coup that overthrew President Mohamed Bazoum, NBC News reported Thursday, citing two unnamed Pentagon officials.
A group of Nigerien soldiers appeared on TV Wednesday saying that they ousted Bazoum, who was democratically elected in 2021. “The defense and security forces … have decided to put an end to the regime you are familiar with,” said Maj. Col. Amadou Abdramane, spokesman for the group that took power, which calls itself the National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland.
The following day, Niger’s military released a statement saying that it supported the coup. “The military command of the Nigerien armed forces has decided to subscribe to the declaration by the Defence and Security Forces in order to avoid a deadly confrontation between the various forces,” said a statement signed by Niger’s armed forces chief of staff, Gen. Abdou Sidikou Issa.
The US condemned the military takeover and is backing Bazoum but has stopped short of formally calling it a coup as that would require cutting off aid to the country. Secretary of State Antony Blinken did warn that the US partnership with the country depends on “democratic governance and respect for the rule of law.”
The US has a significant military presence in Niger, with at least 1,016 troops in the country. The US constructed a major drone base in Niger, Air Base 201, which houses armed MQ-9 Reaper drones and supports US counterterrorism operations across Africa.
The US counterterrorism mission in Africa has been a complete failure. Writing for The Intercept, journalist Nick Turse explained that in 2002 and 2003, the first years of US counterterrorism assistance to Niger, the State Department counted just nine terrorist attacks in all of Africa.
“Last year, the number of violent events in Burkina Faso, Mali, and western Niger alone reached 2,737, according to a report by the Africa Center for Strategic Studies, a Defense Department research institution. This represents a jump of more than 30,000 percent since the US began its counterterrorism efforts,” Turse wrote.
Turse noted at least 10 coups launched in West Africa since 2008 were led by US-trained soldiers, including in Burkina Faso, Mali, Gambia, Guinea, and Mauritania. He said it wasn’t immediately clear if the soldiers who took power in Niger have received US training.
Source: AntiWar.
