Sahr John Yambasu watched people die at sea and abandoned his journey but is among thousands who can’t return home as borders closed following the coup in Niger. After three months of crossing the desert and then watching other migrants die at sea in a failed attempt to reach Europe, Sahr John Yambasu gave up on getting across the Mediterranean and decided to go back home. The 29-year-old from Sierra Leone reached Niger in June on his return journey, but United Nations officials said he had to wait for packed migrant centres to empty before he could be repatriated. Then soldiers toppled Niger’s president a few weeks later, which led to the borders being closed. Yambasu was trapped. He is one of nearly 7,000 discouraged migrants trying to get home to Africa that the UN estimates have been stranded in Niger since late July when members of the presidential guard overthrew the country’s democratically elected president, Mohamad Bazoum. Niger’s junta closed its airspace and nearby countries closed border crossings as part of economic and travel sanctions, making it hard for people to leave.