Daily Times

West African leaders came together Thursday for an emergency summit on the coup in Niger, whose new military rulers have defied an ultimatum — backed by the threat of force — to restore the elected president and pressed ahead with appointing a new government. More than two weeks after the coup that toppled Niger’s elected president, Mohamed Bazoum, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) says it is seeking a diplomatic solution but has not ruled out military intervention.

Important decisions are expected from the gathering in Nigeria’s capital Abuja, according to a statement from the 15-nation organisation on Tuesday. Struggling to stem a cascade of coups among its members since 2020, the bloc gave the troops who seized power on July 26 until last Sunday to reinstate Bazoum or face the potential use of force.

But the coup leaders remained defiant and the deadline passed without action. In their latest show of resistance against international pressure, the military leaders named a new government, according to a decree read out on national television on Thursday.

Prime Minister Ali Mahaman Lamine Zeine will lead the 21-member administration, with generals from the new military governing council heading the defence and interior ministries. The possibility of a military intervention in Niger, a fragile nation that ranks among the world’s poorest, has sparked debate within ECOWAS and warnings from neighbouring Algeria as well as Russia.

Niger’s neighbours Mali and Burkina Faso, both ruled by military governments that seized power in coups, have said an intervention would be a “declaration of war” on their countries.